Monticello, NY - On March 25, 2021, New York State Supreme Court Judge Stephan Schick sentenced Isaac Kantrowitz, 89, of Woodridge, upon his conviction for Reckless Driving stemming from a June 2, 2019, crash that claimed the lives of two Sullivan County teens. Devin Zeininger and Justin Finkel were struck by a vehicle operated by Kantrowitz on Glen Wild Road in the Town of Thompson, resulting in their deaths. After an extensive, weeks-long presentation, a Sullivan County grand jury charged Kantrowitz with Reckless Driving, an unclassified misdemeanor, and two traffic violations. Following the grand jury’s determination, Sullivan County District Attorney Meagan Galligan held a press conference urging the State Legislature to pass the Vehicular Violence Act, a set of laws proposed in 2019 to correct current laws that prevent criminal prosecution of many fatal crashes like this each year across the State.
Kantrowitz pled guilty to Reckless Driving on March 1, 2021, and was sentenced today following a hearing that included statements by family members of the teens, as well as arguments by the prosecutor and defense attorney and a statement from the defendant. The Court was asked by the prosecution and the Zeininger and Finkel families to consider the impact of the loss of two young lives upon their families and their community. In imposing sentence, Schick stated that he was considering all of the circumstances in this case and the circumstances of this defendant, and imposed a sentence which includes a condition that Kantrowitz never drive again, as well as the maximum permissible fine and surcharge. His driver’s license was permanently revoked.
Galligan issued the following statement: “The deaths of Devin and Justin will always be an unfathomable tragedy. When I inherited this case, my Office made this investigation a priority and fulfilled our promise to these victims to make a full, fair and legal presentation of this case to a grand jury and to prosecute any crimes it charged. The defendant pled guilty to the top charge issued by the grand jury and his license is permanently revoked. While my Office joined in the recommendations of the Zeininger and Finkel families, Judge Schick ultimately determined that justice in this case does not call for incarceration. I recognize the anguish of these families and our community, and I continue to urge our Legislators to enact the Vehicular Violence Act to fix the broken laws in our State as they relate to offenses like this.”