LOWER EAST SIDE, MANHATTAN (PIX11) -- A man who police investigators say was driving drunk when he plowed his pickup truck into a group of friends and family members at a Fourth of July party is scheduled to go before a judge later today.
He's accused of killing a mother and her adult son in the crash.
Meanwhile, a man who's the son and brother of the two victims returned to the scene of the Thursday evening crash, and had a message for the truck driver.
"Own up to your mistake," said Diamond Pinkney, 29. His mother, Lucile Pinkney, 59, and his brother, Hernan Pinkney, 38, were killed when the truck rammed into them, according to the NYPD.
"You took something very important to me," Pinkney continued, from the crash scene at Water and Jackson Streets. "I don't know how long it's going to take for me to come back from, but I know I've got loved ones with me. The community is with me," he said.
He was addressing Daniel Hayden, 44. NYPD investigators say that Hayden was drunk, and rammed his Ford F-150 pickup through construction barriers to drive into Corlears Hook Park, just east of Jackson Street, at around 8:45 Thursday evening.
The crash killed the mother and son, and injured 11 other people. All of them had been enjoying a cookout and party in the park when the crash happened, according to the NYPD.
Hayden, who police say lives more than 35 miles away from the crash scene, in Central Jersey, is scheduled to go before a judge on Friday afternoon to be arraigned on three counts of driving while intoxicated and aggravated unlicensed operation of a vehicle.
"We forgive him," said Pinkney's partner, Krystal Jimenez, adding, "karma will come and get you, what goes around comes around, and I just pray that God has
mercy on your soul."
"He took very important people from us, and that's something that we will be forever affected by."
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