Rachel Lodice, of Georgia, pleads guilty in crash that killed Cynthia Mitchell, of Freeport, DA says

A Georgia woman pleaded guilty in Nassau County Court on Monday to manslaughter and other charges in a 2024 Massapequa car crash that left a 64-year-old driver dead, authorities said.

Rachel Lodice, 22, was high on marijuana, speeding and had run multiple red lights in Massapequa when she T-boned the 2022 Nissan Altima being driven by Cynthia Mitchell of Freeport, authorities said.

Lodice was driving approximately 76 mph five seconds before the crash on a roadway where the speed limit is 35 mph, prosecutors said, citing the event data recorder from Lodice’s vehicle.

Lodice pleaded guilty Monday to second-degree manslaughter, assault, vehicular manslaughter, leaving the scene of a fatality without reporting, grand larceny and driving while ability impaired by drugs.

Prosecutors said she is expected to be sentenced to 3 1/3 to 10 years in prison. Prosecutors recommended she be sentenced to 7 to 15 years in prison.

Lodice’s attorney could not be reached for comment.

"As I have unfortunately said far too many times, impaired driving has devastating consequences," Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly said in a statement. "This defendant made several disastrous choices endangering multiple drivers on the road as she sped through red lights and drove on the wrong side of the road while high on marijuana. Those reckless decisions led to a tragic outcome when the defendant slammed into Cynthia Mitchell’s vehicle, killing her, and injuring her friend who was also in the car. Today’s guilty plea cannot undo the pain Cynthia’s family will forever endure, but it’s a step toward justice."

Lodice began driving her 2023 Kia Rio at about 6:30 p.m. on April 23, 2024, leaving a Target store and then stopping briefly in a Walgreens parking lot before she started speeding on Hicksville Road, driving on the wrong side of the double yellow line and over a raised median, prosecutors said. She also ran several red lights, officials said.

At approximately 6:45 p.m., Lodice failed to stop at a red light at the intersection of Hicksville Road and Sunrise Highway while impaired by marijuana and T-boned Mitchell’s car, which was also carrying another passenger, prosecutors said.

Mitchell was taken to Nassau University Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead shortly after arrival, prosecutors said. Mitchell’s passenger had several broken ribs and a lacerated spleen as a result of the crash. She was treated and released from the hospital. The women had been on their way to shop at a Hobby Lobby.

Prosecutors said Lodice fled the scene of the crash in a Town of Oyster Bay public safety officer’s vehicle that had stopped to provide assistance, and drove for several miles before the vehicle’s engine was remotely disabled by officials on a dead end road in Seaford.

Lodice was then arrested by officers from Nassau police’s Bureau of Special Operations. She initially pleaded not guilty to the charges.

She is scheduled to be sentenced July 21. 

By Nicole Fuller

nicole.fuller@newsday.com@NicoleFuller

Nicole Fuller is Newsday's senior criminal justice reporter. She began working at Newsday in 2012 and previously covered local government.