![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-1367500410-jpg-678x381.webp.webp\" "\\"blur")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
A Queens man was sentenced to up to 18 years in prison for a high-speed drugged-driving crash in 2025 on the Southern State Parkway that killed his 21-year-old sister and another 23-year-old female passenger.<\/p>\n
On January 12, 2025, at approximately 11:05 p.m., Jaden D\u2019Souza was driving a 2016 Dodge Dart eastbound on the Southern State Parkway near Exit 30, carrying his sister, 21-year-old Haily D\u2019Souza, and 23-year-old Crystal Alba-Figueroa in the backseat, and another 23-year-old male passenger in the front seat.<\/p>\n
D\u2019Souza was traveling in and out of lanes at a high rate of speed when he lost control of the vehicle, drove off the road, and crashed into a tree on the grassy shoulder.<\/p>\n
The vehicle came to rest upside down on the shoulder.<\/p>\n
Alba-Figueroa was ejected from the vehicle and pronounced dead at the scene.<\/p>\n
Haily D\u2019Souza was trapped in the rear passenger seat and was pronounced dead at the scene. The 23-year-old male passenger was taken to Nassau University Medical Center (NUMC) with serious physical injuries, including spinal fractures and a traumatic brain injury.<\/p>\n
D\u2019Souza was transported to NUMC and treated for his injuries.<\/p>\n
During the crash, a spare tire became dislodged from the defendant\u2019s vehicle and struck another vehicle traveling eastbound on the Southern State Parkway, causing that vehicle to crash into a guardrail, injuring the driver.<\/p>\n
During the investigation of the crash, police recovered several cannabis products in the crash debris and in the vehicle, including THC-infused products, rolling papers, a bong, and lighters.<\/p>\n
A search warrant for D\u2019Souza\u2019s hospital blood taken the evening of the crash revealed the sample contained a high level of the active and impairing component of cannabis.<\/p>\n
The event data recorder inside D\u2019Souza\u2019s vehicle showed that the defendant was driving 123 miles per hour when he lost control of the vehicle.<\/p>\n
He was arrested at NUMC on January 13, 2025, by members of the New York State Police.<\/p>\n
D\u2019Souza, 20, pleaded guilty on March 23, 2026, before Judge Caryn Fink to Aggravated Vehicular Homicide (a Class B felony); two counts of Manslaughter in the Second Degree (a Class C felony); Assault in the Second Degree (a Class D violent felony); Assault in the Third Degree (a Class A misdemeanor); and Driving While Ability Impaired by Drugs (an unclassified misdemeanor).<\/p>\n
D\u2019Souza was sentenced on May 8 to seven to 18 years in prison. The Nassau County District Attorney\u2019s Office recommended a sentence of seven to 21 years in prison.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe defendant\u2019s extreme recklessness stole the lives of two young women, including his own sister,\u201d said Nassau DA Anne Donnelly. \u201cHaily and Crystal\u2019s families are left grappling with a void that shattered their world. The defendant\u2019s actions are a reminder that driving while impaired leads to tragic and preventable deaths. This sentence sends a clear message that there is a heavy price to pay for such a flagrant disregard for human life. Our hearts are with the victims\u2019 families, and we hope this result brings them a measure of justice.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A Queens man was sentenced to up to 18 years in prison for a high-speed drugged-driving crash in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":181993,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[9,24,63,122,124,123],"class_list":["post-225444","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-queens","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-nyc","tag-queens","tag-queens-headlines","tag-queens-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/225444","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=225444"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/225444\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/181993"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=225444"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=225444"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=225444"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}