Diana Kutateladze, of Oceanside, charged in crash that killed 2 on Southern State Parkway

Two people were killed and several injured on the Southern State Parkway late Sunday when police said a woman who was driving while intoxicated near Malverne caused a six-vehicle crash.

New York State Police said Diana Kutateladze, 36, of Oceanside, was driving a 2020 Cadillac Escalade west on the parkway at about 10:15 p.m. when she sideswiped a BMW driving in the left lane near Exit 17, according to a news release. Police said Kutateladze lost control and drifted over the center median, where her car hit multiple vehicles and crashed head-on with a 2016 Toyota Highlander. 

Two passengers in the Highlander, Donald Maxwell, 82, and Liscent B. Maxwell, 88, were declared dead at the scene.

The crash involved six vehicles and 10 drivers and passengers, police said. Multiple people were taken to hospitals, including one person who was critically injured but expected to survive, police said.

Two lanes of the parkway were closed overnight, but all lanes were reopened by 5:15 a.m.

Investigators believe Kutateladze was speeding and impaired, police said. She was charged with aggravated vehicular homicide, two counts of vehicular manslaughter, felony assault and DWI.

A hospital arraignment for Kutateladze at Mount Sinai South Nassau, where she remained Monday, was postponed, prosecutors said and a criminal complaint was not available. A defense attorney was not listed in online court records.

In 2024, Long Island had 28 deadly substance-related crashes that were reported by police, marking the lowest number seen since 2015, when the figure stood at 143, according to the Albany-based Institute for Traffic Safety Management and Research.

The institute said it uses several factors to define a substance-related crash, including whether police reported that the incident involved alcohol, prescription medication or illicit drugs.

Police are asking anyone with information or video of the crash to call state police investigator Jeffrey Shillingford at 212-814-9597.

Newsday's Peter Gill contributed to this story. 

Check back for updates on this developing story.