Van Hits, Kills 4; NYPD Arrests Off-Duty Officer

A van driven by a drunken off-duty police officer hit and killed a pregnant woman, her young son and her teenage sister, and the woman’s baby died soon after being delivered alive, officials said.

Maria Herrera, 24, who was eight months pregnant, died after she was hospitalized Saturday night. Doctors delivered her baby boy after the accident, but he died Sunday morning.

Herrera’s sister, 16-year-old Dilcia Pena, died at the scene. Herrera’s 4-year-old son, Andy, died about an hour later at the hospital. They were crossing the street to visit the sisters’ parents when they were hit by a van.

The officer, Joseph Gray, was arrested at the scene, Det. Eugene Canapi said. Gray, a 15-year veteran, was charged with drunken driving, manslaughter, reckless endangerment and reckless driving, Canapi said. Gray was also suspended from the force.

He pleaded not guilty at a Sunday afternoon arraignment and was released on his own recognizance. Prosecutors had asked for $500,000 bail. His next court date was set for Friday.

Gray “has indicated to us how terrible he feels for the individuals who have died and their families,” said his attorney, Stephen Worth.

A half-dozen bouquets of flowers, three candles and a rosary were placed in a cardboard box at the site of the accident.

“I can’t believe this happened,” said Maria Hernandez, the sisters’ aunt, as she stood crying and hugging relatives across from the accident scene.

Herrera’s husband, Victor Manuel Herrera, was at the hospital when his newborn son died, relatives said.