A female hit-and-run driver who plowed into seven pedestrians in Midtown Manhattan on Sunday night has been pictured entering court wearing a ‘good vibes’ t-shirt.
Imani Lucas, 29, is charged with attempted murder after reportedly praying to God and closing her eyes as she ran a red light on the crosswalk between West 36th Street and 6th Avenue in her black Honda Accord at 11.55pm.
She was pictured in handcuffs on Tuesday morning flanked by two cops as she entered a Manhattan court looking disheveled while wearing a gray t-shirt emblazoned with the slogan: ‘good vibes’.
Her mother said she suffers from bipolar disorder and may have been experiencing a manic episode at the time of the crash.
Lucas, from Belle Mead, New Jersey, underwent a psychiatric evaluation before being charged with seven counts of attempted murder, seven counts of assault, reckless endangerment, leaving the scene of an accident with serious injuries, and reckless driving.
Imani Lucas, a hit-and-run driver who plowed into seven pedestrians in Midtown Manhattan on Sunday night has been pictured entering court wearing a ‘good vibes’ t-shirt
Lucas is charged with attempted murder after reportedly praying to God and closing her eyes as she plowed into seven pedestrians on a crosswalk between West 36th Street and 6th Avenue in her black Honda Accord at 11.55pm
The New Jersey local was pictured in handcuffs on Tuesday morning flanked by two cops as she entered a Manhattan court looking disheveled while wearing a gray t-shirt emblazoned with the slogan: ‘good vibes’
Gruesome images from the aftermath of the crash show many of the victims – six men and one woman, ranging in age from 24 to 61 – sprawled on the ground unconscious and covered in blood.
Meanwhile, Lucas, from Belle Mead, New Jersey, continued driving for around another 13 miles via the Midtown Tunnel before she crashed into two vehicles off the Long Island Expressway at Clearview, Queens.
Miraculously, each of the pedestrians and other motorists impacted by her rampage are expected to survive – though some suffered horrific injuries ranging from leg fractures to spinal cord damage requiring five hours of surgery.
Photographs which emerged in the immediate aftermath show the front of Lucas’ Honda completely crumpled by the impact of her final crash – and new images released on Tuesday show her in transit moments before.
CCTV pictures released on Tuesday show Lucas hurtling down the highway, appearing to run red lights as another vehicle waits at a pedestrian crossing.
Shocking new photographs show the aftermath of bloody hit-and-run after a female driver plowed into seven pedestrians in New York late on Sunday
Shocking new photographs show the aftermath of bloody hit-and-run after a female driver plowed into seven pedestrians in New York late on Sunday
She reportedly said a prayer before running a red light and smashing into people on the crosswalk between West 36th Street and 6th Avenue at 11.55pm. Pictured: her Honda Accord just before the crash
Gruesome images caught moments later show the grisly impact of what police believe was an attempt to murder seven innocent pedestrians.
Cops said they were mainly New Yorkers, with one or two tourists involved – reportedly from Italy.
An alarmed employee from a nearby Taco Bell leapt into action after he saw what happened.
He said each of the pedestrians appeared unresponsive when he first rushed out onto the street. Many were flung between bin bags near the sidewalk, photographs show.
‘I took them water and tissue to clean everything. It was a very dangerous accident,’ the Taco Bell staffer told Pix11 moments after the crash.
Footage of the scene shows people stepping between their bodies as they tried to check their vital signs, with one man on the phone to emergency services.
The pedestrians – six men and one woman ranging in age from 24 to 61 – were left sprawled across the street in Manhattan. Many were covered in blood and landed between bin bags on the sidewalk (pictured)
Lucas’ black Honda Accord was badly damaged by the crash in Queens, around 13 miles away from where she plowed into pedestrians
NYPD has so far identified the victims as six men aged 24, 27, 28, 30, 32 and 61, along with a 34-year-old woman.
They were taken to area hospitals with the exception of the 30-year-old man who refused to go, cops said.
Their injuries range from ‘general complaint of distress to a fractured leg’.
A date for Lucas’ court appearance has not yet been confirmed as she continues to undergo psychiatric evaluation.
Two of the pedestrians have been named by Italian English outlet La Voce di New York as Italian tourists Giulia Gardini, 34, and Matteo Maj, 51.
Gardani, a tennis instructor, from Piacenza just outside Milan, was left in a critical condition after the impact left her with a cervical spine injury requiring five hours of surgery.
Maj, a graphic designer, needed surgery for a tibia and fibula procedure, according to the paper, who spoke with his sister Monica Maj.
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