A Staten Island man has admitted to being the driver of a booze-fueled car crash that killed two of his pals in summer 2010, authorities announced today.
Nicholas Marchese, 22, pleaded guilty in state Supreme Court, St. George, to aggravated vehicular homicide and vehicular assault, said a spokesman for DA Daniel Donovan.
Marchese was clocking a blistering 90 mph in a Nissan Altima just before 1 a.m. on Aug. 29, 2010 when he lost control of the sedan and wrapped it around a utility pole at the intersection of Arthur Kill and Arden roads, prosecutors said.
Daniel Peluso, 19, and Jeffrey Capretta, 20, died in the horrific wreck.
Two other young men in the car – Julian Pacheco, then 23, and Thomas Sjeimie, then 19 – survived but needed steel rods inserted in their legs in order to walk again. Also injured was occupant Rob Grossman, then 20.
The six buddies had been guzzling drinks at a birthday party held at the Clubhouse Lounge at 1549 Arthur Kill Rd. and crashed shortly after they left the bar and piled into the Nissan, said prosecutors.
Marchese had initially denied being the driver and had a blood alcohol level of .20 percent – more than twice the legal limit .08.
However, witnesses and scientific evidence proved Marchese was in fact the wheelman, said Donovan.
Marchese faces up to 25 years behind bars when he is sentenced on March 8.
“For the first time today, defendant Nicholas Marchese admitted his responsibility for the deaths of Daniel Peluso and Jeffrey Capretta, and for the injuries suffered by Julian Pacheco and Thomas Sjeimie,” said Donovan in a statement.
“The reckless decision by the defendant to get behind the wheel of a car while heavily intoxicated in the early morning hours of August 29, 2010, transformed a night of celebration into a tragedy,” he continued.
“After such an overwhelming loss, my hope is the defendant’s admission of guilt followed by a significant prison sentence will offer some sense of closure for these families as they cope with their grief and try to move forward with their lives.”