Suspect In Alleged LI Hit-And-Run That Injured 3-Year-Old Girl Appears In Court
CENTRAL ISLIP, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- A man accused of striking a 3-year-old girl in a stroller with his Jeep on Long Island and then leaving the scene appeared in court Tuesday, but his lawyer argues the driver did not flee at all.
Scott Shea, 30, was arrested Monday and charged with leaving the scene of an accident after the collision around 3:45 p.m. in Shirley.
Shea was in a 2005 Jeep driving northbound on William Floyd Parkway south of Montauk Highway when he hit the little girl, police said. Witnesses said the 3-year-old was being pushed across the street by her mother.
Shea was captured at a nearby supermarket parking lot.
As WCBS 880 Long Island Bureau Chief Mike Xirinachs reported, when Shea was asked outside court Tuesday if he had anything he wanted to say to the girl's family, the suspect replied, "I'm sorry."
His attorney, Vincent Trimarco, described it as a terrible accident and said Shea only drove to a safe location and then stood by his vehicle.
"He didn't realize that there was the stroller in the accident at all until he came back," Trimarco said. "And he did come back. He was there at the scene. I don't believe being in the shopping center right next to the intersection is leaving the scene of the accident."
The judge set Shea's bail at $7,500.
The little girl was taken to Stony Brook University Hospital, where she is being treated for a broken arm and lacerations, Xirinachs reported.
Witness Eugene Martin said he heard the mother screaming.
"And it was a wail," he said. "It went to your core, and you knew something was wrong. Then I realized her kid got seriously hurt."
People who live nearby say the intersection is dangerous.
"Even with this light, it's not uncommon for cars to blow through this light (driving) at least 50, and the posted limit is 45," said Martin.
Investigators have not said if Shea ran a red light or was speeding, CBS 2's Weijia Jiang reported.
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