AHRC driver charged with DWI after crashing van with disabled clients aboard in Freeport

The driver of an AHRC van taking two disabled passengers to a group home was charged with driving while intoxicated at more than twice the legal limit when she crashed into a parked car in Freeport, police said in court records.

Her arrest was among at least three cases of drivers charged on Long Island with driving while under the influence following crashes between Tuesday and Wednesday morning. 

Prosecutors said Chantal Joseph, 66, of Valley Stream, was transporting two residents from AHRC in Freeport to a group home in Bellmore just before 4 p.m. Tuesday when the green 2020 Toyota Sienna she was driving sideswiped a parked truck on Albany Avenue in Freeport, according to charging documents. Neither of the two passengers was injured.

Joseph was charged with driving while intoxicated and two counts of endangering the welfare of an incompetent or injured person.

Freeport police said Joseph smelled of alcohol and had watery eyes before failing a field sobriety test. She also blew 0.19% estimated blood alcohol content on a preliminary breath test, more than twice the legal limit of 0.08%, according to court records. 

She was represented by Legal Aid, and her attorney could not be reached for comment. 

AHRC Nassau officials did not reply to several messages left Wednesday. A staff physician told police that Joseph was an assistant manager for AHRC tasked with driving the residents Tuesday, according to court records. 

Joseph pleaded not guilty during her arraignment Wednesday in First District Court In Hempstead, where a judge ordered her license suspended. She was released to pretrial services with an alcohol evaluation and ordered to return to court Dec. 6.  

 Also on Tuesday, Thomas Keane, 64, of Babylon, was charged with multiple misdemeanor counts after he crashed an SUV into a neighbor's house, police said. Charges included DWI, driving on a suspended license and using a vehicle without an ignition interlock sobriety reader, police said. No injuries were reported.

And on Wednesday, a Medford woman was charged with DWI after a crash in North Patchogue that seriously injured a Shirley man, police said.

Police said they charged Aleshia Davis, 39, after her vehicle struck a 2011 Hyundai Sonata just after 12:30 a.m. at Route 112 and the Sunrise Highway South Service Road.

Authorities said Davis was driving her 2024 Audi Q7 south on Route 112 when she hit the Hyundai, which was heading east on the service road.

Davis was taken to Long Island Community Hospital in Patchogue, where she was treated for minor injuries. The driver of the Hyundai was also taken to the same hospital where he was treated for more serious injuries.

 Both vehicles were impounded by police. Arraignment information for Davis was not available, and no attorney was listed.

By John Asbury

john.asbury@newsday.comJohnAsbury

John Asbury is a breaking news and general assignment reporter. He has been with Newsday since 2014 and previously worked at The Press-Enterprise in Riverside, California.