Connecticut man acquitted in Long Islander's Interstate 95 death

A Connecticut man has been acquitted of vehicular manslaughter in the November 2014 drunken driving death of a Long Islander killed while aiding a stranded motorist.

Jose Sierra-Velasquez, 30, of Stamford, was acquitted Tuesday by a state judge following a three-day trial, the Stamford Advocate reported.

Sierra-Velasquez was convicted of driving drunk in the November 2014 crash. He could face up to a year in jail on the DUI charge at his January sentencing.

Investigators said Velasquez was driving a friend's car up the southbound on-ramp at Exit 7 on Interstate 95 when he collided into a stalled vehicle that was involved in an earlier crash.

The impact of the collision sent Derian Garaicoa-Ortega, 18, who was helping the driver of the stopped car, flying 48 feet. He died of blunt force trauma. Garaicoa-Ortega had recently graduated from Glen Cove High School.