Madeline Henriquez of Brentwood pleads guilty in 2022 crash that killed mother of 5
Madeline Henriquez of Brentwood is led out of the Fourth Precinct in Smithtown to her arraignment in First District Court in Central Islip on June 2, 2022. Credit: James Carbone
A Brentwood woman is facing 3½ to 10½ years in prison after pleading guilty Wednesday to manslaughter in a hit-and-run that took the life of a mother of five in Hauppauge last year.
Madeline Henriquez, 22, admitted striking pedestrian Cherokee Fletcher on a sidewalk along Motor Parkway on May 23 and later attempting to conceal evidence that could have led to her conviction. She will be sentenced before Suffolk County Supreme Court Justice John Collins May 19.
“Cherokee Fletcher was a mother of five young children. She was standing at a light waiting to cross the street after getting cash for one of her kids to attend a field trip. As she stood feet from the home she shared with her children, this defendant drove up onto the sidewalk and crashed into her,” Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney said in a statement. “Instead of stopping and getting help or rendering aid to Cherokee, this defendant drove away leaving her to die, and later attempted to conceal her cowardly crimes.”
Police initially said Henriquez struck a BMW shortly after 10 p.m. the day of the crash, causing the other vehicle to leave the road and hit Fletcher, killing her.
WHAT TO KNOW
- Madeline Henriquez of Brentwood pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the 2022 Motor Parkway hit-and-run that killed a Hauppauge mother of five.
- Henriquez admitted striking a vehicle and continuing on to a sidewalk, where Brooklyn Fletcher was waiting to cross the roadway, striking and killing her.
- She will serve 3 1/2 to 10 1/2 years in prison when she is sentenced on May 19.
In court Wednesday, however, Henriquez said it was her vehicle that continued on after the initial crash and killed the 28-year-old mother, whose children ranged in age from 1 to 7 years old. Prosecutors said she never stopped or slowed down following the crash, continuing along Motor Parkway to her home in Brentwood.
“Maddie is truly sorry and she offers her sincere condolences to the entire Fletcher family,” defense attorney Robert P. Kelly of Woodbury said on behalf of his client.
Henriquez also admitted Wednesday to having her 2012 Hyundai Elantra towed to another location for repairs the morning after the crash. She then turned over to investigators on June 2 a different cellphone than the one she had the night of the crash, she admitted the court. Prosecutors said she did so in an effort to conceal evidence that she had knowledge of the crash.
She also pleaded guilty Wednesday to two counts of tampering with physical evidence, reckless driving and leaving the scene of a crash with injuries.
“Unfortunately, she panicked and made some terrible decisions that night and the days that followed,” Kelly said. “By pleading guilty today, [she] takes full responsibility for her actions and she hopes that one day the Fletcher family can forgive her.”
At the time of Henriquez's arrest, Suffolk police said she became a suspect after a police officer on patrol noticed her car on a tow truck outside her home. Prosecutors said the car had extensive damage to the windshield and passenger side.
Though prosecutors said at the time of her arrest that Henriquez had consumed alcohol the night of the crash, Kelly said, “There was no evidence that drugs or alcohol were involved.” He said his client is a native of El Salvador who came to the United States when she was 8 years old and her decision to leave the scene was based on concerns over “immigration issues.”
Before accepting the plea, Henriquez, who was accompanied at court by her mother and stepfather Wednesday, was warned by Collins that because she is not a U.S. citizen, federal authorities could pursue deportation proceedings against her following her guilty plea.
“If anyone has told you that you will not be deported, that is wrong,” the judge cautioned.
In pleading guilty, Henriquez also waived her right to appeal her conviction. Her sentence on the lesser charges will run concurrently, giving her the opportunity to be released in 3½ to 10½ years.
In his statement, Tierney said no sentence could make things right for Fletcher’s family.
“There are no penalties under the law that can make up for the fact that there are five children right now who are left without a mother because of this defendant’s recklessness,” Tierney said.
Grant Parpan covers Suffolk County courts and federal courts for Newsday. A Long Island native, he joined Newsday in 2022.
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