Police in Brooklyn said a 13 year old girl was R”L killed when the car she was traveling in struck a tree and a one-family home in Marine Park this afternoon.
The accident happened at 1620 East 23rd Street between Avenue P and Quentin Road.
Police responding to a 911 call said Sarah Erdan A”H, 13, was taken to Kings County hospital where she was R”L pronounced dead.
The 16-year-old driver of the car, and another male passenger were also taken to the hospital and are both listed in stable condition..
Misaskim Volunteers who were just leaving the Levaya of 8-year-old Avigdor Krasny A”H, who was R”L killed in the Shmini Atzeres fire in Flatbush, were called to the scene to once again perform their Avodas Hakodesh.
Late Sunday evening the 16-year-old driver was arrested, and charged with criminally negligent homicide and reckless driving.
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(Source: WPIX)
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49 Responses
Baruch Dayan Haemes
How truly sad. There are no words.
Please explain why a 16-year old is driving without a responsible adult in the car.
Today has been a terrible day of tragedies involving young people R”L. This was preventable.
please explain how it is your place to judge.
it sadly happened- a high school girl is dead.
we can’t change what happened as much as we wish.
please do not bring anymore pain to the family.
they are suffering enough
FIRST WE HAVE A young boy Rachmana L’tzlan Niftar now we have this sad tragedy Rachmana L’tzlan
these kind of things happening & people being Niftar at young ages or in strange ways R”L are all wake up calls to klal yisroel & to the people of that town, that we only care about ourselves, but when it comes to helping/caring for another yid then i cannot help you.
with that being the case, each time tragedy strikes Hashem has the same question-for each person separately-now you have woken up, now you are crying at this baby’s levaya R”L but when we hear of someone else in tragic cases… we dont care. hashem then wants to know if we will wake up now to help others or do we need another tragic WAKE-UP call from hashem C”V to care for one another?
Considering the fact that they reported “another male passenger” in the car, it is completely within the realm of possibility that there was a responsible adult in the car at the time of this tragedy. Having a licensed responsible adult in the car is required for a 16 year old to drive in NY (even if only bearing a permit!). However, the existence of a “responsible adult” in the car would not necessarily have prevented the tragedy.
May Hashem bring nechama to Sarah’s family, and to all of those mourning loved ones at this time.
Baruch Dayan HaEmes.
Has there been anything like this before? Every day it seems more Jewish people, young, old, little children, are dying. It’s like the bus bomb attacks in Jerusalem back in 2000.
Except then we could blame it on the terrorists. Who do we have to blame now, except ourselves? Shir Lama’alos, Esa Einei El Heharim, Meiayin Yavoh Ezri..
the other male passenger is her 16 year old brother, hardly a qualified, responsible adult.
He was arrested on manslaughter charges. His parents and the other person in the car may be held accountable too by the police for violating a NYC motor vehicle law. Underage drivers (less than 18) with permits are permitted to drive with a number of restrictions, one of which is a requirement the car have “dual controls” (which means dual brakes). This is the law in NYC, whether we like it or not. This is the the 2nd frum teen arrested for manslaughter r’l in flatbush in less than a month while behind the wheel (the 1st abesnt mindedly rear ended someone on a moped while texting at a red light). Parents, and anyone who has a car they lend out, please remember that a car is a lethal weapon if not used properly. Please be mindful of all applicable laws when letting a teen behind the wheel of a car. Please also be mindful of who is driving the car when you are a passenger. Lastly, always wear a seatbelt, even in the back of the car, which may not be required by law but is dictated by seichel.
Clarification. Criminaly negligent homicide is manslaughter plus (in this case the legal definition of the charge hinges on the fact that he was operating a car he was not allowed to), it is a worse charge than straight up manslaughter. This is a very serious charge, even for a 16 year old.
I’m not a Rav, Rebbe or Manhig. Its not my place to delve into why, what or how or to preach to others what they should or should not do. As a father of teens, I know this story shook my wife and I to the core, and we immediately started a discussion with our own son who has been lobbying to get his own learners permit. Our first order of business was to become familiar with all laws regulating underage drivers with permits and if our understanding of these regulations listed on the website at state.ny.us are correct, we have basicly told our son, the only way you are getting behind the wheel of a car with a permit is with a licensed instructor, using his /her dual control car. There is no driving the family car, even with a parent in the car, even for 2 blocks, no matter how many times he asks. At this point he is ready to wait until he is 18 to get his permit, the fun suddenly taken out of getting his permit. We are terrified to let our son behind the wheel of a car. As responsible and mature as we might think he is.
Please get your facts correct about the legality of a 16 year old driving in New York City:
http://www.nydmv.state.ny.us/youngerdriver/grad-nyc.htm
New York City Restrictions (5 Boroughs) –
Junior Learner’s Permit
With Your Junior Learner Permit
You may drive:
* Only between the hours of 5 AM and 9 PM and only under the direct supervision of:
o Your parent, guardian, or a person “in loco parentis,” or
o A driver education teacher or a driving school instructor.
o The person who supervises your driving must be at least age 21 and have a license valid for the vehicle you are driving.
o The vehicle being driven must have dual controls (dual brakes).
o The only passenger allowed in the front seat is your supervising driver.
Junior License
When driving in the five boroughs of New York City, a junior license does not offer any additional driving privileges compared with a Junior Permit. See the restrictions for Junior Permit.
The following can be verified on the NYS DMV web site.
The law is that someone with a NYS Junior Driver’s Permit (anyone under the age of 18) who wants to practice specifically in the 5 boroughs of New York City must do so in a car with dual-brakes (like a driver’s ed car), besides needing to have a licensed adult next to him/her.
If this was not the case with this 16-year-old driver, then she is certainly in trouble.
I know this to be true, because we checked out the rules and verified them with the DMV; and my child is currently under 18 and my spouse takes my child over the Queens / Nassau border to Nassau County for driving practice.
To #4.
I presume you’re addressing me. In what way did I judge? And in what way did I bring added pain to the grieving parents of this poor child? You think they’re not grieving enough & my comment made them think something they didn’t already ask? It was designed to make the rest of us think before we blithely toss the car keys at our teens.
Now I am “judging.” A 16 year old does not belong behind the wheel of a car without a licensed, mature driver supervising. The passenger who survived was also 16. No mention of any adult. The driver has to live with what happened, whether or not he was reckless, which just piles on the horror. Life is full of “if only’s”.
It WAS a preventable tragedy. Yes, of course it was an accident! It’s a terrible thing to happen to everyone involved and their families. After the news I heard yesterday of a wonderful 33-year old mother of 6 (inc a 6 week old) passing away yesterday in the UK (YWN didn’t report THAT) following on the heels of the fatal fire on Shemini Atzeret, this tragedy just made me gasp in horror for the utter waste and devastation affecting so many people.
To all readers and commenters (#6)
In NEW YORK CITY (5boroughs of Brooklyn, Queens, Bronx, Staten Island and Manhattan) it is ‘against the law’/forbidden to drive until the age of 18. The only exception is for those who completed a certified and accredited Driver Education Program. Driving with a permit is allowed after the 18th birthday in NY.
To Lisa S:
I read elsewhere that the other male passenger was also 16
Baruch Dayan Haemes.
bestbubby, i knew the girl and i know other passanger in the car very well and to hear you say ”this was preventable” is disgusting. do you even know exactly what happened? lets not jump to conclusions,
The DMV laws are as follows for someone under age 18 within the 5 boroughs of NYC:
Someone with a Junior License must not drive within NYC.
Someone with a Junior Permit or a Limited Junior License may drive within NYC, between the hours of 5 am and 9 pm (for a Junior Permit), IF the car has dual brakes, and IF supervised by a licensed driver who is at least age 21 AND has a license valid for the vehicle being driven AND who is a parent, guardian, person “in loco parentis,” driver education teacher, or driving school instructor.
IF any of the above laws was not followed; then yes, the 16-year-old should not have been driving, in which case, yes, the accident could have been prevented; and then this is something that she will have to live with, for the rest of her life.
IF the 16-year-old should not have been driving, then answering “it’s disgusting,” to someone who said that the accident could have prevented, or saying that you know the driver and passenger very well, does not alter the reality of the fact that the 16-year-old should not have been driving.
A motor vehicle is C”V a potential killing machine, in the wrong hands, without proper supervision.
#3, “Please explain why a 16-year old is driving without a responsible adult in the car” He’s not supposed to be, WHICH IS WHY HE WAS ARRESTED!!!
#16 – Jump to conclusions? a 16 year-old should not be driving. His having been the driver was 100% preventable, since it is illegal. Driving 65 mph on a city street with a 30 mph speed limit is also preventable. A a matter of fact, one of the reasons it is illegal for a 16 year-old to drive is because they don’t always have the sense not to drive 65 mph in a 30 mph zone! Do you think he would have been arrested if the police felt he did nothing wrong?!?
Dear #16
You completely miss the point. Tell me in what way this accident wasn’t preventable?
16 year olds do not belong behind the wheel of a car with 2 other children as passengers & no adult with them.
What is wrong with that statement?
Correction to #17, as the driver was male:
this is something that he will have to live with, for the rest of his life.
So he is 16, and he was driving in NYC, a Honda Odyssey minivan (which, I assume, does not have dual brakes), and without a licensed supervising adult age 21 or older, and driving 63 miles per hour in a 30-mile-per-hour zone.
Questions, anyone?
If the driver has a Junior License (vs. a Junior Permit or a Limited Junior License), he is not even allowed to drive at all in the 5 boroughs of NYC.
He had free choice to drive or not to drive. He is responsible.
Lets leave judgment to those responsible for judging (not anyone here).
What is the take away from this tragic situation is more important.
who are u people to judge this could have happened to any1 driving!! i know the driver really well and iv been in the car with him this kid is one of the safest drivers i know iv never seen him go over 25 on a regular street not the same u can say for “responsible adults” …they were a block away from her house another car was pulling out of the driveway not looking he hit the brakes and lost control of the car this can happen to any1 so its very easy to judge talk and blame people how bout getting a life get off ur computer and do something about it make a difference
r.i.p sara erdan
#24, you don’t get it.
The driver was not supposed to be driving.
i can honsetly say that i knew her personally……but at this time people can not judge imagine how bad the driver and her brother feel? please dont judge this trajedy is enoumours just protect your children from another trajedy like this its easy in hindsight to be skeptical just be sad
It usually takes a tragedy for people to learn what is acceptable. In 3 months, there have been 3 Frum teens charged with felony driving crime. When will people learn that their child is NOT the exception to the rule. Teenage drivers should not drive without an older driver present. This is for City driving, and especially important for Catskills driving. May we learn from this mistake. HaMokem Yinachem Eschem B’soch Aveily Yerushalayim.
To be honest this could have been prevented. How you can ask? IF THE PARENTS did not give over the keys. There is the prevention. I say the parents shopuld be charged as well. I am curious though how did the kid get the keys to the car? So to all those skeptics this was a preventable crime *nd my heart goes out to the families. B”DEk
#24 your post is wrong and disturbing on so many levels.
1. Just because YOU never saw him do something, does not mean he did not do it.
2. Driving more than DOUBLE the speed limit, in a residential area with kids running around, means he should not be on the road.
3. Saying you know worse drivers means nothing other than it is probably in your best interest to walk or take a train.
4. Saying publicly that you have been in the car with him as the driver before can only hurt your friend. Last you want is for the DA to know that this illegal driving of his was not a one off. Might also mess over his parents if found that they have allowed him to use the car illegally (even on previous occasions).
I really hope you are some bored kid who just wants to ruffle feathers online rather than someone who knows him. If you really do know him just just mess him up even more than he is already.
#24 were u on the scene? did u see what happened? there was no car pulling out of the driveway. he rammed a parked car, skidded into a tree and was finally stopped by the house. sara’s neshoma should have an aliyah and the family should have a nechoma, and we should all be careful about letting our teens drive and letting our children in cars with driving teens. we don’t need to judge the driver. let’s just learn from this incident to be more careful and responsible.
Without putting any blame on any particular person at this difficult time, but the mishna berura says that banim meisim as a result of talking during kadish.
That does not mean specificaly the kids of the talker.
It means children generally die through this bizayoin.
Perhaps we could undertake to be more particular in this line?
Maybe some rabbanim could back this up?
When I originally posted (#6, above) I was not aware that the “other male in the car” was only 16 as well.
Additionally, I was not aware of the dual brakes requirement for 16 year olds with a permit to drive. I am quite relieved, from a personal standpoint, as my young son has been pressing me to be allowed to get his driver’s permit. I will happily (and with much relief!)wait till he is older.
#31, thank you. Finally something we can take away from this tragedy & learn from.
I say we start a campaign to bring more awareness of this to the klal, Liluy Nishmas Sarah Erdan.
its amazing how such a reliable source cud get facts all screwed up–the kid was 17 w/ a license, was not speeding, went over a bump tried 2 break but lost control, was a freak accident that cuda happened 2 a/o, mom hugged driver @ levaya sed no ill feelings
Baruch daayan haemet. Im not judging but everyone is forgetting about the girl R”L that got killed by her brother nebach. now he will have to live knowing he killed HIS OWN SISTER. he did do something wrong but what happened happened thats how the world works: we cant go back in time . we wish we cud and im sure the driver now wishes he can go back but he cant. REMEMBER EVERYTHING is from Hashem. What was meant 2 happen will happen. if Hashem wanted her to pass on He couldv’e made her be under a tree and a leaf, the smallest leaf would fall on her she would pass away. remember u still have to have hishtadlut in watever u do. Pls pray and do teshuva! everyone including myself!
It is a fact that the boy’s parents are ehrlach, fine and hard working people. Al tadin es chavercha ad shetagia limikomo: Do not judge your fellow man until you find yourself (to be) in his situation. Since you will never be in exactly the situation that they find themselves in, do not judge.
…also if u look at the car its blatantly obvious the kid cud not have been doing 65 in2 that house cuz the car wuda been totaled n theres no way there wuda been any survivors…17, 27,37,47—that cuda happened 2 anyone
her brother wasn’t driving he was in the passenger seat a friend was driving and #34 is completely right finally some1 saying wat really happened i love how evry1 judges and listens to watever the news says so pathetic esspecially to be sittin on here talkin bout wat u dont know
# 35- It was NOT the brother. It was his 17 year old friend who did have a license and was not speeding. It was a horrible accident that could have happnened to anyone regardless of age. If people don’t know the facts firsthand, they shouldn’t be making these comments that hurt both the family as well as the driver who will have to live with this for the rest of his life. I think that’s punishment enough.
(Please post this comment, not my previous one, this one has an error corrected)
For the record, the defendant here was charged with 4 counts.
1. A speeding violation
2. Operating a vehicle as an unlicensed driver
3. Criminally Negligent Homicide
4. Reckless driving.
This info was found, and can still be found, on the NY Courts, “eCourts” web database.
I’d be willing to bet count number 2 was issued because he was neither 17 nor had a valid license
#40 i dont mean to sound rude or a/t but were did u get ur facts from, was it the media who as usual was wrong and doesnt care about destroying s/o’s reputation? well a/o i know for a fact the kid was 17 w/ alicense—from a very reliable source (how about sarah’s family)…n ill say it agen it was a very tragic accident that cuda happened 2 a/o…regardless of the age
To “FrummyMcFrum”, “bestbubby”, and “QuestionForYou”, ur info is incorrect, just because u read on the internet or even ny courts, does not mean it’s correct. The driver was not going 63 mph or a bad kid or driving illegally. It’s absolutely assur to believe any of this baloney u read. Ask any competent engineer or person with brains. A car going 63-mph that crashes into a tree or house doesn’t leave survivors. To echo #41, I too am a family friend of the Erdan’s and they beg of all u to stop with the lies and misinformation. It is wrong of all of u to perpetuate these lies. It is a not a “FRUM” thing to go ahead and publicly spread motei shem ra, especially having not known a single party involved. I find ur username quite ironic
Wow it’s amazing how some people can judge…..I happen to the sarahs family and Eric really well. Eric is one of the safest drivers I know and one slip up has everyone talking. The fact that he’s gonna have to live the rest of his life knowing he killed someone is enough punishment for him. Sarah was one of my good freinds and by her levaya there was not a dry eye, she was takin to young but her mom has nothing against Eric she even gave him a hug at the levaya to show no hard feelings. Sarah will be missed sorley
Baruch Dayan Emes
R.I.P. Sarah Erdan
To #41 and #42. I did NOT get mt facts from the media. Anything which happens in court becomes a matter of public record which becomes available to the public.
I went to the ecourts site and searched the defendants last name. From there I was able to see his court date, who the judge was, and the charges against him. Those are the 4 charges Eric was charged with at his arraignment. Feel free to check it out yourselves, it is better than any source you’ll ever get.
Seems like many could use this as a reminder
http://www.theyeshivaworld.com/article.php?p=37293
i really was hoping i didnt have 2 say this but did u ever think were they got there info from??? wat u think i am lying my bro was by the levaya n he heard this this 1sthand from the family he saw sara’s mom hug eric n sed its ok…i dont know y find its so hard 2 believe that ppl do make mistakes(not every 17 yr old boy is a bad driver-no im not a boy) n that there r gud ppl out there…if u still feal that ur misinfo is right then go to the shiva house cuz im not gonna dignify u w/ another response
Post this one not the previous (and you COULD leave out the header this time Yehuda)
If he was 17 with a license and he is being charged (unfairly) as a 16 year old driving illegally, then he has the worst lawyer in the country representing him. His age and his license should NOT be in question, it can easily be looked up. No way those charges go forward unless they are accurate.
Glad to know you are full of denial, and surrounded by people in denial. Oh, and learn some physics before you comment on who would die from what sort of crash.
Oh, and good thing you are not posting again. Getting tired reading your gibberish and so called grammar.
To FrummyMcFrum (and all the others who are posying batant misinformation):
I know it must be hard to believe, but many times people to get charged unfairly and wrongly. Sometimes charges that are false do go forward becaus police want to make a point or example out of someone, but in this case it’s all based on lies.There should be no debate regarding his age, license, and the speed he was driving at. I personally know the family and I can tell you with certainty that this driver was 17, had a license and was not speeding. This information is all from the family themselves, who are very upset with the lies being spread. And by the way, I spoke to someone who is an expert in physics, and he did say that he looked at the picture and there was no way it was going at 63 mph. If it was there would have been no survivors. Another point to FrummyMcFrum- try living up to your username. A frum person doesn’t post rechilus, misinformation, lies, and something that they don’t know to be 100% true. I am not in denial and the people who agree with my sentiments are not either. These FACTS ar all from Sara’s a”h family herself and I’m sure they are a very reliable source. If they can agree to forgive this driver for a this accident, then I think everyone else should to. It was a freak accident that could have happened to anyone.
I know that it’s over 3 years later,
but I looked at this article again,
and I apologize if I judged anyone unfairly.