New York State Troopers Patrolling Thruway Arrest Bronx Man For DWI

The holiday season is a time for celebration every single year and over the course of a calendar year there are numerous holidays that people everywhere celebrate with incredible enthusiasm. With that said, it is also not uncommon that leading up to and during major holidays, law enforcement will ramp up their activity, patrolling areas and looking out for those who may celebrate a little to hard.

While it is something that anyone who's anyone has heard a thousand times before, it is during these times of celebration that inevitably a handful of individuals make the poor decision to get behind the wheel of a vehicle after having a few.

State Troopers Thruway Investigation

This is the type of scenario that played out last week for New York State Troopers patrolling the Thruway just days before the Thanksgiving holiday. According to the press release issued by the New York State Police, this incident played out during the early morning hours of Tuesday November 24, 2024.

State Troopers of Tarrytown were traveling on patrol along the Thruway close to 3am when they pulled into the Ramapo Service Area. At the service area, Troopers noticed a parked 2017 Nissan pick-up truck with its lights on.

Troopers then approached the vehicle and through observation noticed an individual in the drivers seat who was possibly sleeping. Troopers also observed what looked to be an empty beer bottle in the vehicles front cup holder.

These observations then lead Troopers to questioning the male driver. The driver was identified as 45-year old Genaro Garcia-Cortes of the Bronx. While identifying Garcia-Cortes, Troopers also identified two other passengers in the pick-ups backseat area, both females and one was identified as being 10-years old.

Thruway DWI Arrest

After confirming Garcia-Cortes as the driver, Troopers continued on with their investigation and questioning. During the process, Troopers noticed the smell of alcohol "emanating" from Garcia-Cortes, which lead to them placing Garcia-Cortes under arrest for Aggravated DWI – Leandra’s Law, which is a class E felony.

Following the arrest, Troopers brought Garcia-Cortes to SP Tarrytown where he submitted to a chemical test. The results of the test showed that Garcia-Cortes had a BAC (Blood Alcohol Content) of .15%, which according to the New York DMV is nearly double the legal limit.

After the test Garcia-Cortes was processed without incident and then issued multiple traffic tickets. Garcia-Cortes tickets are returnable and his return date to court is set for January 22, 2025 at 5pm.

Potential Penalties

Aggravated DWI or Leandra's Law is considered to be the "most serious and egregious drunk driving offenses". This is because of the fact that a child was in the car at the time of this incident. The penalties if found guilty also become more severe depending on whether or not a child was injured in one these events.

Similar Content: Multiple Narcotics Seized in Rockland County, NY Drug Raid

In this case, Garcia-Cortes charge is classified as class E because a child was in the vehicle, was under the age of fifteen (15) and was not injured. The potential penalties for class E Aggravated DWI are...

Get our free mobile app

• four (4) years in prison even for a first time offender
• A fine up to $5,000, but no less than $1,000.
• Five years probation depending on whether the child sustained no or little injury.
• License revocation for at least a year
• Attendance at a Victim Impact Panel
• $520 surcharge and a three year DMV assessment totaling $750
• installation, at a cost to you, of a ignition interlock device

In addition to these potential penalties, law enforcement as well as prosecutors and even parents are required to report the arrest to the Statewide Central Register of Child Abuse and Maltreatment. That is in addition to potentially having to report the arrest to numerous other agencies.

In short, there are a multitude of reasons why a DWI arrest can have a wide ranging effect on ones life outside of the legal consequences.