By: Salina Esitfanos

On May 18, 2017, Richard Rojas drove his vehicle into busy Times Square traffic that left one person dead and over 20 others injured. Surveillance video showed the car jumping the curb and ramming into the crowd people, bodies be thrown over the car.

A troubled man with a history of drunk driving told the traffic agent, “I wanted to kill them all,” according to a criminal complaint. Rojas movements were unsteady, speech was slurred, and glazed over. Mr. Rojas allegedly told an officer that he smoked after the accident. He later told another officer, “I smoked marijuana. I laced the marijuana with PCP.”

Alyssa Elsman, an 18-year-old resident of Portage, Michigan, who was visiting the city, was killed. Authorities reported another 22 people were injured, but police revised the total to 20 on Friday.
Rojas, a Bronx resident who had served in the Navy, tested positive for PCP and told police that God made him do it, a law enforcement source told CNN.

The suspect, who suffered from “psychological issues,” also told police he expected officers to shoot him, according to the source. Investigators are considering the suspect’s state of mind and mental health issues. He currently faces up to 20 counts of murder.

GDH Law would like to stress the importance of driving under the influence and the dangers that come along with it. Local communities throughout the United States provide free services for those struggling with drug and alcohol addiction.

Our thoughts are with the Elsman family and those injured in this horrific incident.

If you have been injured in a car accident, call us now at (301) 769-6835 for a FREE consultation with an experienced automobile accident attorney so that we may help you.

We’ll fight for YOU, the GDH way…the ONLY way!