Drunk Driver In Fatal Crash Gets 6-18 Years

The crash caused by drunk driver Ryan Gurecki killed Karen Holden, a Huntington Station nurse, in June 2016

Photo/Suffolk DA’s office
Ryan Gurecki

By Jano Tantongco

jtantongco@longislandergroup.com

Ryan Gurecki, the Lindenhurst man who drove drunk and caused a crash that killed Huntington Station nurse Karen Holden, was sentenced to six to 18 years in prison by Justice Fernando Camacho at the Suffolk County Supreme Court in Central Islip on Friday.

Gurecki, 35, drove a 2010 Ford Explorer and struck a 2016 Ford Escape that was stopped at a red light westbound on Jericho Turnpike, waiting to make a left turn onto Route 110 in Huntington Station on the night of June 26, 2016.

In the crash, Karen’s husband William, suffered a head injury and their son in the front passenger seat suffered an injury to his back. Karen died at Huntington Hospital from her injuries.

Gurecki, a carpenter, previously told police he had five beers at his job site before the crash. Crime lab tests showed the defendant’s blood alcohol level was .13, over the legal limit of .08, at the time of the crash, according to Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota. In March, he pleaded guilty to aggravated vehicular homicide, second-degree manslaughter, driving while intoxicated and three counts of third-degree assault.

Lynne Rogers Pallmeyer, Holden’s sister, called the verdict “disappointing.” She said it was too light, a “slap on the wrist” for Gurecki. She stressed that with drunk driving incidents happening daily, something more serious needs to be done.

“If they continue to allow people getting away with only six to 18 years for the murder of somebody from drunk driving, it’s ridiculous. No one’s seeing it as a serious crime any longer,” Pallmeyer said.

On the day of the crash, the Holden family was traveling to Virginia to help son Kenneth Holden and his wife decorate their new home. Kenneth just completed his third year in the U.S. Army, Pallmeyer had previously said.

Pallmeyer said she is soliciting letters from those who knew Holden to send to the parole board, which will ultimately decide how long Gurecki serves his sentence past the minimum six years. She can be emailed at Lpallmeyer@verizon.net.
 

Holden Memorial Scholarship Set

Lynne Pallmeyer, sister of Karen Holden, the Huntington Station nurse killed in a crash caused by a drunk driver, announced the creation of a scholarship in her sister’s memory.

The scholarship will be offered to two telemetry nurses each year to pursue a continuing education program in Palm Springs, California. Telemetry nurses, like the late Holden, monitor patients’ vital signs and often are present at the time of death.

“The ironic thing is that my sister held the hands of all these people so they would have a peaceful passing,” Pallmeyer said. “And, my sister is the one who ended up not having anyone to hold her hand.”

The first awarding of the scholarship will be held tomorrow for two recipients at St. Francis Hospital in Flower Hill, where Holden worked, to coincide with National Nurses Week.

“She’s still missed. Our hearts are still broken.”

-TANTONGCO