A New Jersey man was indicted on Monday by a Monmouth County grand jury, facing several charges pertaining to a fatal crash on the Garden State Parkway earlier this year. Eric Periera, 23 years old of Jackson, was under the influence of alcohol when he rear-ended a van near mile marker 120 in Aberdeen Township on April 2nd.

The van, driven by Kevin Donnelly of Middletown, hit a guardrail and flipped over, hitting another vehicle heading southbound on the same road. Donnelly was killed in the crash, and two of his passengers along with the driver of the third vehicle sustained injuries from the New Jersey car accident. Periera faces charges for one count of vehicular homicide and three counts of assault by auto.

Our most sincere condolences go out to the family of Kevin Donnelly during this difficult and tragic time. We hope that the victims who were injured in the crash experience a speedy and complete recovery from the accident.

According to the Century Council, distillers fighting drunk driving and underage drinking, out of the 149 alcohol-impaired driving fatalities in New Jersey in 2009, 18 of them involved intoxicated underage drivers.

As stated in N.J.S.2C:11-5, Eric Periera will be found guilty of vehicular homicide if it can be proven that “the defendant was operating the auto or vessel while under the influence of any intoxicating liquor, narcotic, hallucinogenic or habit-producing drug, or with a blood alcohol concentration at or above the prohibited level as prescribed in R.S.39:4-50.”

Eric Periera, if found guilty, could be held responsible for compensating the victims injured in the fatal car wreck on April 2nd. Victims that have been injured in car accidents may be entitled to compensation for medical bills, treatment, time away from work, rehabilitation costs, pain and suffering etc. If you are injured in an accident like this, do not hesitate to contact a NJ car accident lawyer to help protect your rights and help you get the compensation you deserve. Console & Hollawell are award-winning personal injury attorneys, serving victims in Pennsylvania and New Jersey for over 17 years. Call us toll free at 1-866-778-5500 to set up a free consultation.

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