Summary: Stella Mednik, a suspended immigration lawyer, has been identified as the driver of a vehicle involved in a DUI accident in Herald Square, New York.
A drunken driver who struck five pedestrians on the sidewalk in Herald Square, New York, has been identified as an immigration lawyer.
Stella Mednik, was operating a rental car with a suspended license, according to the New York Post.
Mednik also has a suspended law license due to shady billing practices. Her blood alcohol level was .185 when the accident occurred at the Forever 21 store at 10 p.m. on Wednesday night.
There were five pedestrians injured in the crash, including a woman in critical condition and a 14-year-old girl.
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Mednik is from Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. She had a male passenger in the car with her at the time. Both were taken to Bellevue Hospital. She has been charged with drunk driving and criminal possession of a controlled substance.
The vehicle as a silver Mustang convertible. A crack pipe was also found inside the car, but it is unknown who rented it.
In an online profile, which is grammatically incorrect, Mednik wrote the following:
“I have arraigned people in various Criminal Courts and participated on of counsel basis as well as lead trials in areas of DWI, criminal trespassing, and possession of illegal substance cases.”
Mednik’s license to practice law was suspended by a judge back in 2011 due to her mixing personal funds and her practice funds. She also bounced business-related checks.
“The respondent testified that during the relevant time period, she was emotionally distraught and unstable due to various mental-health issues and the medications prescribed to treat her condition,” the court record said.
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The wild ride in the Mustang began on 34th Street between Seventh Avenue and Broadway. She was heading west when she hit the rear of a Subaru.
Mednik backed up, made a U-turn, and began driving East on the street. She reportedly weaved in and out of traffic, crossing over into oncoming lanes multiple times.
At Sixth Avenue, Mednik crashed into a Toyota and then a cab driven by Kulijit Singh.
After hitting the cab, the vehicle went up onto the sidewalk in front of Forever 21, hitting the five victims.
One of the victims, a French tourist identified as Isabel Tootedjlapu, said, “I saw the car was coming up super fast. It was up on the sidewalk. It hit everyone on the sidewalk, and went into the glass.”
Mednik graduated from Brooklyn Law School in 2002 and is an immigrant from Tajikistan, according to the New York Daily News.
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Image credit: Stella Mednik Facebook