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[h=4]Firefighter pleads guilty in fatal wrong-way crash[/h]A New York<span style="color: Red;">*</span>man pleaded guilty to aggravated homicide and other charges Friday for an alcohol and drug-fueled wrong-way crash in November that killed a newspaper delivery woman and critically injured her former husband.
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White Plains Firefighter Erik Refvik pleaded guilty to aggravated homicide and other charges Friday for a drug-fueled wrong-way crash last November that killed a newspaper deliverywoman and critically injured her former husband.
The accident scene Nov. 3, 2014 after authorities said White Plains Firefighter Erik Refvik drove the wrong way on South Lexington Avenue and caused a fatal collision.(Photo: Joe Larese/The Journal News)
A New York<span style="color: Red;">*</span>man pleaded guilty to aggravated homicide and other charges Friday for an alcohol and drug-fueled wrong-way crash in November that killed a newspaper delivery woman and critically injured her former husband.
Erik Refvik, a White Plains firefighter, was promised a sentence of between five and 15 years in state prison in exchange for his guilty plea to all of the charges in the 16-count indictment. He could have received up to 25 years on each of the top felony counts alone.
"The court made this offer in order to bring finality to these proceedings," Acting State Supreme Court Justice Barry Warhit said. Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 25.
Refvik, who had been free on $50,000 bail, was taken into custody immediately after Friday's hearing. As his hands were cuffed behind him, he turned and nodded to a large contingent of friends and family in the courtroom to support him.
USA TODAY
Suit: Bar got firefighter drunk before wrong-way crash
Assistant District Attorney Michelle Lopez noted Refvik could have faced a steeper maximum sentence "given the egregious nature in which this event unfolded," and said prosecutors had hoped he would receive six to 18 years in prison.
Refvik, 34, had been arraigned in March on the indictment charging him with aggravated homicide, aggravated manslaughter, vehicular assault, drunk driving, drug possession and numerous traffic infractions in the Nov. 3 head-on crash that killed Reyda LaMadrid, 47, of Harrison and injured 49-year-old Edgar Lopez.
The horrific collision occurred at 4:30 a.m. after prosecutors said Refvik went on a 12-hour drinking binge at local bars and ingested a "cocktail of drugs," including cocaine, sedatives and bath salts. His blood alcohol level was 0.21 percent — nearly three times the legal limit — when he sped in his Chevrolet Tahoe about 1/3 of a mile the wrong way on South Lexington Avenue, slamming into the pair's Honda Civic.
Erik Refvik is shown in this mug shot taken at his arraignment Monday<span style="color: Red;">*</span>(Photo: Contributed photo)
Refvik then reversed his SUV and smashed into the lobby of an apartment building.
He then allegedly told emergency responders: "What a way to end a Sunday fun day."
Refvik had reportedly been living with his family in his hometown of Mahopac since his arrest, when he was suspended without pay.
White Plains Public Safety Commissioner David Chong said Friday that with the guilty plea, the department "will now proceed with administrative actions," leading to Refvik's dismissal.
After Friday's proceedings Refvik's lawyer, Andrew Quinn, said his client agreed to the plea because of his "desire to bring closure and some solace, to the extent that he could, to the LaMadrid family and to accept responsibility for his actions. ... Erik is a very decent guy. He truly is. And that is not in any way an attempt to mitigate his actions."
Lopez's lawyer, William Cooper, said Friday that Refvik's guilty plea "certainly doesn't close the book on this matter, but it is a step toward bringing peace to the family. The pain is obviously not alleviated, but we will continue to move forward."
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