Andre-Marcel Devieux, state correction officer from Amityville, charged in crash that killed unborn child

A state correctional officer was indicted Friday for causing a head-on crash late last year that killed the unborn child of one of the occupants of the other vehicle, Suffolk County prosecutors said.

Andre-Marcel Devieux, 28, of Amityville, was charged with two counts of second-degree assault, second-degree reckless endangerment, reckless driving, third-degree aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle and multiple other traffic infractions. State law does not allow an unborn fetus to be the subject of a homicide charge.

Devieux was arraigned Friday before acting State Supreme Court Justice Anthony Senft Jr. and was being held on $20,000 cash or $40,000 bond.

If convicted of the top count, he faces up to seven years in prison.

"This crash changed lives in an instant," said Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond Tierney. "The survivors here were left with devastating injuries, including a young woman who was pregnant and looking forward to welcoming a new life into the world. Unfortunately, under New York law, no charges can be brought for the death of an unborn child."

At the time of the crash, Devieux was employed as a correction officer at Fishkill Correctional Facility. His driving privileges were suspended, prosecutors said.

Devieux is out on workers compensation, the State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision said. The department "will be reviewing the case and plans to move to suspend the officer without pay," a DOCCS representative said. 

Joseph Lo Piccolo, the defendant’s Garden City-based defense attorney, said Devieux, an eight-year veteran of the State Corrections Department, stayed at the scene of the crash and attempted to give medical aid until EMTs arrived.

“He was cooperative with the police department at the time of the incident, as well as in the hours afterwards,” Lo Piccolo said. “He surrendered at the request of detectives. We will be reviewing evidence when it is shared by the District Attorney's Office, and we'll look to prepare a defense to this matter, recognizing that it was a tragedy due to the injuries and the loss of an unborn child.”

Shortly after 8:30 p.m. on Dec. 28, Devieux was driving his 2020 Jeep Grand Cherokee northeast on Parkway Avenue, a residential area in Amityville, at about 106 mph, prosecutors said.

Where Parkway Avenue merges with Schleigel Boulevard, Devieux blew through two stop signs, continued onto the wrong side of the road and crashed head-on into a 2016 Volkswagen Jetta that was traveling in the opposite direction, authorities said.

The driver of the Jetta sustained injuries including to his leg, femur, rib and spine and eye socket fractures that required inpatient rehabilitation, officials said.

The front-seat passenger, who was seven months pregnant, was taken to Good Samaritan Hospital where doctors attempted to save her baby but were ultimately unsuccessful. The female victim sustained injuries to her rib, along with sternum fractures.

Devieux is due back in court on April 14.

By Robert Brodsky

robert.brodsky@newsday.com@BrodskyRobert

Robert Brodsky is a breaking news reporter who has worked at Newsday since 2011. He is a Queens College and American University alum.