Teen killed in crash with truck mourned

Family and friends, stunned by the sudden death of Floral Park teenager Akash James, said Sunday he will be remembered as someone who always put the needs of others before his own.

The 17-year-old Floral Park Memorial High School senior was killed Friday night in Jericho when, police said, his sport utility vehicle crashed into the back of a tractor-trailer that was stopped at a traffic light at the intersection of North Broadway and South Service Road.

"He was not just a cousin. He was like a brother," said Kevin Augustine, 16, of Garden City Park. "He was my best friend. He never let me down. He would take the blame for me when I'd get in trouble. He was a great person."

Hundreds of people mourned James Sunday on a Facebook page that was set up in his memory and at a wake Sunday night in Park Funeral Chapels in Garden City Park.

A funeral Mass will be offered 9:30 a.m. Monday at St. Mary's Syro Malabar Church in West Hempstead, with burial following at St. Charles Cemetery in East Farmingdale.

"Whenever anybody was sad, he had a corny smile and twinkle in his eyes that would lift your spirits. No matter how low you were feeling, he would look at you and the whole room would light up," said his girlfriend, Victoria Hodgins, 18, of Floral Park.

Police said Sunday the crash was under investigation and that there was no apparent criminality. James was driving his parents' 2002 Toyota Highlander east on South Service Road about 9:15 p.m. when it hit the back of a 2003 Volvo tractor-trailer, police said.

He is survived by his parents, James Augustine and Molly James; brother, Ashish; and dozens of cousins, aunts and uncles.