Man charged with DWI after crashing onto East Rockaway schoolyard, Nassau police say

An East Rockaway man was charged with drunken driving after police said he drove through an elementary school fence Wednesday and sped onto the field as staff scrambled to get dozens of children back into the building.

There were no injuries, Det. Lt. Richard LeBrun, a spokesman for Nassau County police, said, adding that the staff members, a security guard and a physical education teacher, were "true heros" in getting the 60 to 80 students out of harm's way.

Edward Coghlan, 73, was charged with driving while intoxicated, two counts of fourth-degree criminal mischief, second-degree reckless endangerment and endangering the welfare of a child, police said.

Coghlan was arraigned Thursday in Nassau District Court in Mineola, where he was represented by the Legal Aid Society. He was released with his license suspended.

Coghlan will retain Dennis Lemke, a lawyer based in Mineola. Lemke said his client is "extremely, extremely thankful that nobody was hurt, especially a child."

"We’ll deal with the situation certainly in court," Lemke said about the case. "He broke down crying, knowing that it was a school and children and somebody could have been hurt."

Police said the incident began Wednesday afternoon when Coghlan crashed his Lincoln sedan into a 2018 Subaru in the parking lot of the Wendy's restaurant on Ocean Avenue in East Rockaway.

Coghlan fled, driving out of the lot and heading south on Ocean Avenue, followed by the driver of the car he hit, police said.

A few blocks later, police said Coghlan crashed his Lincoln "through a metal chain link fence" at the Rhame Avenue School on Rhame Avenue and then drove out onto the school field.

LeBrun called the two staff members "true heros" who "should be applauded" because they were "able to usher off expeditiously all the students" back into the building. He said the car, which was going "at a high rate of speed" came between 5 and 10 feet from the staff members.

Coghlan was arrested a short time later by responding Fourth Precinct officers, who stoped his 2004 Lincoln on nearby West Boulevard.

LeBrun said Coghlan showed "several indicators of being intoxicated" and has a prior drunken-driving conviction within the last 10 years.

In an email to parents, East Rockaway School District Superintendent Lisa J. Ruiz "thanked the swift actions of the Rhame Avenue staff who were present and took action to protect our students," she said Wednesday. "We are grateful for their actions."

Ruiz said, "any students who were outside and may have viewed this incident will be counseled and supported by our school staff and faculty."

By John Valenti

john.valenti@newsday.com,keldy.ortiz@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.”