A Ukrainian commercial truck driver facing a deportation order is trying to get his driving privileges back after being found not guilty of killing seven motorcyclists in New Hampshire.
Volodymyr Zhukovskyy, 28, told the New Hampshire Department of Safety in September that he wanted to request a hearing to get his license back, according to records obtained by The Associated Press under the state's open records law. sent a letter.
Zhukovskyy is awaiting a state administrative hearing on his license application to address outstanding DUI charges in Connecticut, where he was arrested a month before the New Hampshire crash. On Thursday, he rejected his plea deal in the case, according to court records.
Unsolved cases solved in 2023: Unsolved mysteries that brought solutions.
In response to the 2022 manslaughter acquittal, Gov. Chris Sununu said the seven bikers “did not receive justice,” and Attorney General John Formella issued strong comments saying he believed the state had proven the case. pulled out.
Volodymyr Zhukovsky looks back at the gallery before closing statements begin during his trial in Coos County Superior Court on August 9, 2022 in Lancaster, New Hampshire. Mr. Zhukovskyy, who was ordered deported, is trying to get his driving privileges back now that he is deported. He was acquitted of charges that killed seven motorcyclists in a 2019 crash. (David Lane/Union Leader, via AP, Pool, File)
Prosecutors argued that Zhukovskyy, who had been under the influence of heroin, fentanyl and cocaine on the day of the crash, had been swerving from side to side before the crash and told police he had caused the accident. But the judge dismissed eight charges of disorderly conduct, saying his lawyer said the biker was intoxicated when he lost control of his bike when he was in front of it and wasn't looking where he was going. He said he slipped in front of him.
A jury found him not guilty on multiple counts of manslaughter and manslaughter stemming from a June 21, 2019, crash in Randolph, New Hampshire. The accident killed seven members of the Jarheads Motorcycle Club, an organization of New England Marine Corps veterans and their spouses.
After Zhukovskyy's arrest, his license was automatically suspended, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement took him into custody after his sentencing for previous convictions including drug possession, driving with a suspended license, providing false information and theft. Mr. Zhukowski was taken from a county jail in New Hampshire to a federal detention center in Pennsylvania.
Zhukovskyy's immigration attorney sought asylum for his client, who came to the United States from Ukraine when he was 10 years old and was a green card resident. A judge ordered Zhukovskyy's deportation last February, but there is no record of an appeal in the case, according to the Office of Immigration Review.
However, it is unclear how it would be sent to a country at war with Russia. The United States has suspended repatriation flights to Ukraine and granted Temporary Protected Status to eligible Ukrainians. Details of the judge's decision have not been made public.
Zhukovskyy was released from a Pennsylvania facility in April on a supervision order, detention and immigration officials said. This type of order allows immigrants to live and work in the United States as long as they meet regularly with ICE representatives and agree to abide by certain conditions.
Zhukovskyy has pleaded not guilty to the charges in Connecticut, but did not respond to requests for an interview from The Associated Press.
Administrative hearings regarding his driving privileges have been postponed at least twice. Earl Wingate, a lawyer representing Mr. Zhukovsky, said any recovery would depend primarily on whether Mr. Zhukovsky made a “significant contribution” to the accident. He said he wanted Zhukovskyy to appear in person, but prosecutors granted Zhukovskyy's request to appear by video, citing safety concerns.
Massachusetts truck driver who killed seven people in motorcycle crash appears in New Hampshire trial
Prosecutor Stephen Case said in the motion that “the car accident has garnered attention and affected a significant number of the victim's family and friends, which has been the source of heightened emotions for all.” Of course there are,” he said.
Wingate agreed that “emotions may run high” but noted that security had been maintained during Zhukovskyy's trial.
Motorcyclists in New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Rhode Island were killed in 2019 crashes.
Mr. Zhukovskyy's commercial driver's license, issued in Massachusetts at the time of the accident, should have been revoked after he was arrested in Connecticut.
Connecticut authorities alerted the Massachusetts Registrar of Motor Vehicles, but Zhukovskyy's license was not suspended due to a backlog of out-of-state notifications of driving offenses. In their investigation, federal investigators found similar backlogs in Rhode Island, New Hampshire, and at least six other jurisdictions.
