Suffolk police: Dad faces Leandra’s Law charges in crash

A Centereach man was charged under Leandra’s Law early Sunday morning after he crashed his car in Ronkonkoma, police said.

Julio Euceda, 32, crashed his 1998 Ford into an unoccupied 2004 Ford on Johnson Avenue shortly before 12:30 a.m., Suffolk County police said in a statement.

Police said he ran away from the scene, but officers found him and his 7-year-old son nearby.

Neither Euceda nor his son was hurt in the crash, police said.

Euceda is charged with aggravated driving while under the influence of drugs or alcohol with a child passenger 15 years or younger, known as Leandra’s Law, as well as acting in a manner to injure a child; first-degree aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle; leaving the scene of an accident with property damage; and use of a vehicle without an interlock device.

Euceda’s attorney, Harry Tilis, said his client was released after an arraignment Sunday, at which he pleaded not guilty.