Ex-NYPD detective from Freeport pleads guilty in 2023 Meadowbrook State Parkway drunken driving crash that injured 2

A former NYPD detective pleaded guilty Wednesday to aggravated vehicular assault and other charges pertaining to a drunken driving accident on the Meadowbrook State Parkway that left his passenger and another motorist injured back in August 2023, officials said.

George Moore, 40, a 10-year veteran detective of the NYPD who lives in Freeport, pleaded guilty to charges stemming from drinking at several Rockville Centre bars before getting behind the wheel and colliding with another vehicle on the Meadowbrook State Parkway more than a year ago, Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly said. The crash left his 2014 Mercedes-Benz overturned and in flames on the side of the parkway, injuring Moore and two others.

"George Moore was heavily intoxicated after a night out in Rockville Centre but nevertheless got behind the wheel of his Mercedes, speeding along the Meadowbrook State Parkway and putting countless lives at risk," Donnelly said in a statement. "As a sworn law enforcement officer, George Moore should have known the threat he was on the road that night and the damage he could cause. His selfishness and reckless disregard upended the lives of two innocent women and landed him on the wrong side of the law."

Moore decided that pleading guilty was his "best course of action," said Peter Brill, his Hempstead-based defense attorney.

"He extends his regrets to the individuals who were involved in the accident and hopes that by taking responsibility, he can spare them any further pain that they might have to go through from reliving it in court if the case had to go to trial," Brill added.

In the early morning hours of Aug. 4, 2023, Moore was driving northbound on the Meadowbrook with a female passenger. The Freeport man was heading to work at the 103rd Precinct in eastern Queens, Nassau County Assistant District Attorney Nicole Vota said during a court proceeding in February.

Moore was "driving aggressively" on the parkway when he crashed into a 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee in the center lane, Donnelly said. The detective’s vehicle subsequently crashed into the parkway’s center divider and then into a tree on the right shoulder before flipping over and catching on fire.

Moore, his passenger and the female driver behind the wheel of the Jeep were all taken to Nassau University Medical Center for treatment, officials said. Moore sustained fractures to his pelvis, an arm and a leg. His passenger suffered "serious physical injury," including fractures to her left wrist, left foot and spine, Donnelly said. The woman operating the Jeep suffered injuries to her lower back, left shoulder and right knee.

The NYPD detective surrendered to state troopers on Feb. 28. On Wednesday, he pleaded guilty before acting state Supreme Court Justice Howard Sturim to charges of aggravated vehicular assault, second-degree assault, third-degree assault and aggravated driving while intoxicated.

Moore is due back in court on Jan. 21. He is expected to be sentenced to up to 3 to 6 years in prison, Donnelly said.

Moore resigned from his position with the NYPD and is expected to begin collecting his pension in about 10 years, Brill said, adding that "just like any other public employee that vests in their pension, he's entitled to the pension ... based upon the years of service that he had prior to the conviction."