Queens Boulevard once had a grim nickname: the “Boulevard of Death.” In the 1990s and early 2000s, it saw so many pedestrian fatalities that the city redesigned it with longer crossing times, fences, lower speed limits and, more recently, protected bike lanes. The stretch through Rego Park and Forest Hills, near the 63rd Drive subway station and the restaurants, bars and lounges that line the boulevard and its side streets, is far safer than it was. But one danger no street design can fully solve is a driver who has been drinking.
When a drunk driver hurts you, two separate legal processes usually begin: the criminal case against the driver, and your own civil claim for compensation. They run on different tracks, with different rules and different goals, and sometimes involve different defendants, including a bar or restaurant that over-served the driver. A drunk driving accident lawyer in Rego Park helps you understand both. Here is how they fit together.
Case One: The Criminal DWI Case
Who brings it: The Queens County District Attorney, on behalf of the People of the State of New York.
What it decides: Whether the driver is guilty of offenses such as Driving While Intoxicated (VTL Section 1192), with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08% or higher, or other proof of intoxication; Aggravated DWI (0.18% or higher); Driving While Ability Impaired; and, where someone is hurt, more serious charges such as vehicular assault or vehicular manslaughter.
Standard of proof: Beyond a reasonable doubt.
What you get: A criminal conviction can lead to jail, fines, license revocation and an ignition interlock requirement. A court may order restitution for certain out-of-pocket losses, but a criminal case does not compensate you for pain and suffering.
Your role: You are a witness and a crime victim. You have rights under New York law, including the right to be informed about the case and to make a victim impact statement at sentencing. The Queens DA’s office has victim services staff who can help.
Case Two: Your Civil Injury Claim
Who brings it: You, the injured person, or the estate in a fatal crash.
What it decides: Whether the drunk driver (and possibly others) must pay compensation for your injuries.
Standard of proof: Preponderance of the evidence, meaning more likely than not, a lower standard than criminal court.
What you get: Money damages for medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering and other losses, and in some cases punitive damages.
Key point: You do not need a criminal conviction to win a civil case. A guilty plea or conviction can be powerful evidence, but even if the criminal case is reduced or dismissed, the civil case can proceed on its own evidence.
How No-Fault and Serious Injury Still Apply
Even when the other driver was drunk, New York’s no-fault system comes first. Your own auto policy (or the policy of the vehicle you were in, or for a pedestrian a household or the striking vehicle’s policy) pays reasonable medical bills and part of lost wages, generally up to $50,000. File within 30 days.
To recover pain and suffering, your injury must meet the serious injury threshold of Insurance Law Section 5102(d). Drunk driving crashes often involve high speeds and severe injuries that meet this threshold, such as fractures and permanent limitations.
Punitive Damages
Punitive damages are meant to punish especially reckless conduct and deter others. New York courts have allowed punitive damages in drunk driving cases in some circumstances, typically where the conduct shows a conscious disregard of the safety of others, such as extreme intoxication or repeat offenses. They are not automatic, and insurers often take the position that their policies do not cover punitive damages, which can affect collectability. Still, the possibility of punitive damages can be a significant factor in a case.
Case Three (Sometimes): The Dram Shop Claim
New York’s Dram Shop Act, General Obligations Law Section 11-101, together with Alcoholic Beverage Control Law Section 65, allows an injured person to sue a business that unlawfully sold alcohol to a visibly intoxicated person, or to a person under 21, when that sale contributed to the intoxication that caused the injury.
What you must show:
- The establishment sold or served alcohol to the driver.
- The driver was visibly intoxicated at the time of the sale (or was under 21).
- The sale bore some reasonable or practical connection to the crash.
Why it matters: Bars and restaurants usually carry liquor liability insurance. If a drunk driver has only a minimum $25,000 auto policy, a dram shop claim may provide meaningful additional coverage.
Evidence: Bar receipts and credit card records, surveillance video inside the establishment, testimony from bartenders and other patrons, and the driver’s blood alcohol level, which experts can work backward from to estimate how intoxicated the driver appeared when served.
There is also the social host question. New York generally does not impose dram shop liability on private hosts who serve adults at home, although there can be liability for knowingly providing alcohol to people under 21 in certain circumstances.
Coordinating the Cases
Criminal and civil cases can affect each other:
- Evidence sharing. Police reports, breath or blood test results, and dashcam or bodycam video from the criminal case may later be obtained for the civil case.
- Timing. A drunk driver may decline to testify in a civil deposition while the criminal case is pending, invoking the Fifth Amendment. Civil cases sometimes pause or move slowly until the criminal case resolves.
- Guilty pleas. A plea to a DWI charge can be used as evidence in the civil case.
- Restitution. Restitution ordered in criminal court is generally credited against civil damages to avoid double recovery.
What To Do After a Drunk Driving Crash
- Call 911 and tell the dispatcher you suspect the other driver is impaired.
- Get medical care.
- Note anything you observed: slurred speech, smell of alcohol, stumbling, open containers.
- Get witness names.
- Get the police report number and the precinct (the 112th Precinct covers Rego Park).
- If you know where the driver was drinking, write it down.
- File your no-fault claim within 30 days.
- Contact a lawyer quickly. Bar video may be overwritten within days.
Deadlines
- No-fault: 30 days.
- Personal injury lawsuit, including dram shop: generally three years.
- Wrongful death: two years.
- New York’s statute of limitations can be extended in some circumstances when there is a related criminal prosecution (CPLR 215(8)), but do not rely on that; act early.
For information on New York DWI law, see the DMV’s DWI penalties page. For crime victim support, contact the New York State Office of Victim Services.
Holding Everyone Accountable
Mushiyev Law represents people injured by drunk and impaired drivers throughout Queens and Nassau. We pursue the driver, investigate dram shop liability, and coordinate with the criminal process. There is no attorney fee unless we recover money for you. Visit our home page or contact us.
Directions From Rego Park to Our Rosedale Office
Mushiyev Law is at 1 Cross Island Plaza, Suite 325, Rosedale, NY 11422, beside the Cross Island Parkway and the Belt Parkway interchange.
From the 63rd Drive station, the drive to Rosedale typically runs via the Van Wyck south, the Belt Parkway east and the Cross Island Parkway.
When the Drunk Driver Has Little or No Insurance
Many drunk drivers carry only New York’s minimum liability coverage of $25,000 per person, and some have their policies canceled or are driving without insurance at all. That can leave a seriously injured person facing hundreds of thousands of dollars in losses and a tiny policy. Several sources may help close the gap:
- Dram shop coverage from a bar or restaurant that over-served the driver, as described above.
- Vehicle owner liability. If the drunk driver was driving someone else’s car with permission, the owner may be liable under VTL Section 388, and the owner’s policy may apply.
- Employer liability. If the driver was working at the time, for example driving a company vehicle after a work event, the employer may be responsible.
- Your own SUM coverage. Supplementary Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist coverage on your policy can pay when the at-fault driver’s coverage is inadequate, up to your SUM limits.
- Uninsured motorist coverage or MVAIC if the driver had no insurance.
New York law also allows insurers to exclude coverage for intentional acts, but drunk driving is generally treated as negligent or reckless rather than intentional, so liability coverage usually still applies to compensatory damages.
Wrong-Way and High-Speed Crashes
Some of the most catastrophic drunk driving crashes in Queens involve wrong-way drivers on the Long Island Expressway, Grand Central Parkway and Van Wyck, often late at night. Others involve drivers speeding down Queens Boulevard after bars close. These crashes frequently cause traumatic brain injuries, spinal injuries, multiple fractures and deaths. They also produce substantial evidence: crash reconstruction by the NYPD’s Collision Investigation Squad, toxicology results, and often video from city and private cameras. A lawyer coordinates with prosecutors to obtain this evidence at the appropriate time.
Your Rights as a Crime Victim
Under New York law, victims of crimes like vehicular assault have the right to be notified about court proceedings, to be heard at sentencing, and to seek restitution. The New York State Office of Victim Services may also help eligible victims with certain unreimbursed expenses, such as medical costs and lost earnings, under its program rules. These resources are in addition to your civil claim.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need the drunk driver to be convicted to win my case?
No. Your civil claim uses a lower standard of proof and can proceed even if the criminal case is reduced or dismissed, although a conviction or guilty plea can be strong evidence.
Can I sue the bar that served the drunk driver in Rego Park?
Possibly. New York’s Dram Shop Act allows claims against businesses that unlawfully served a visibly intoxicated person or someone under 21, when that service contributed to the crash.
Are punitive damages available in drunk driving cases?
In some circumstances, where the driver’s conduct showed conscious disregard for others’ safety. They are not automatic and may not be covered by insurance.
Does no-fault apply if a drunk driver hit me?
Yes. No-fault pays your basic medical bills and part of lost wages first, regardless of fault. File within 30 days.
How much does a drunk driving accident lawyer in Rego Park cost?
Mushiyev Law works on contingency: no attorney fee unless we recover money for you.
This article is general information, not legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Attorney Advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.