Driver charged with DWI, leaving scene of crash that left bicyclist injured, cops say

A West Babylon man was seriously injured when the bicycle he was riding was struck by a hit-and-run driver in a Babylon Village parking lot Sunday, police said.

Suffolk County police said the driver, identified as Michele Delpezza, 49, of Deer Park, was arrested a short time later — and charged with DWI.

The incident occurred in the village baseball field parking lot on Locust Avenue at about 4:40 p.m., police said.

Police said Kenneth David, 60, was riding his bike in the lot when he was hit by the 2019 Chevrolet Trax driven by Delpezza. Delpezza fled, police said, but returned to the scene as a passenger in another vehicle about 30 minutes later. Police then recovered the Trax at her home on West 18th Street and impounded it for a safety check.

David was transported by ambulance to Good Samaritan Hospital Medical Center in West Islip with what police called serious but non-life-threatening injuries.

In addition to being charged with driving while intoxicated, Delpezza also was charged with leaving the scene of an accident with serious physical injury. She was held overnight at the Fourth Precinct and is scheduled for arraignment Monday in First District Court in Central Islip.

By John Valenti

john.valenti@newsday.com

John Valenti, a reporter at Newsday since 1981, has been honored nationally by the Associated Press and Society of the Silurians for investigative, enterprise and breaking news reporting, as well as column writing, and is the author of “Swee'pea,” a book about former New York playground basketball star Lloyd Daniels. Valenti is featured in the Emmy Award-winning ESPN 30-for-30 film “Big Shot.”