Feder Stole Vehicle From
Hicksville Hyundai Dealership
Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice has announced that Robert Feder was sentenced to 16 years in prison by a Nassau County judge after pleading guilty to killing a Nassau County Deputy Attorney in a Westbury car crash last May while under the influence of cocaine.
According to police, Feder, 51, of Huntington Station, pleaded guilty to Aggravated Vehicular Homicide, Attempted Murder in the Second Degree, and Driving While Ability Impaired by Drugs on Oct. 29.
Rice said on May 4, 2010 just before noon, Nassau County police officers on patrol for reckless and aggressive drivers spotted Feder cross a solid white line while driving a stolen 2010 Hyundai Elantra eastbound on Old Country Road in Westbury. After Feder turned north onto Ellison Avenue, he increased speed and ran every stop sign, Rice said, leading the officers to activate their lights and sirens in attempt to stop Feder.
Instead of stopping, Feder accelerated away from the police car and ran the red light at Maple Avenue, broadsiding 62-year-old John Carney of Levittown as he drove his 1997 Buick westbound, Rice explained. Carney was a 37-year veteran of the Nassau County Attorney’s office. As a Deputy County Attorney, Carney was responsible for preparing the County’s defense in various legal cases. Carney was pronounced dead at the scene, police said, and the driver of a van stopped at the red light was also injured in the crash.
Detectives explained that at the time of the crash, Feder did not have a valid driver’s license and had his license suspended 19 times. The vehicle he was driving was stolen from a Hyundai Dealership in Hicksville and affixed with stolen license plates from Florida, noted Rice. Tests revealed that Feder had taken cocaine prior to the crash, according to Rice, and multiple crack pipes were found in the glove box of the stolen car.
“Mr. Carney dedicated 35 years of his life to public service to the people of Nassau County, and he will be truly missed as a member of his community,” Rice said. “This defendant’s drug-fueled decision to get behind the wheel ensured that this crash was not an accident, but an inevitability.”
Assistant District Attorney Brendan Ahern of the Vehicular Crimes Bureau is handling the case for the DA’s Office. William Kephart, Esq, represents Feder.
