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Incident location, Long Island
What Happened
The family of a 23-year-old Farmingdale man left comatose following an April 9 car crash on Wantagh State Parkway has until 5 p.m. Wednesday to arrange transport to another medical facility or Nassau University Medical Center will conduct tests to determine if he can be declared brain dead, according to a court order signed Tuesday by Nassau County Supreme Court Justice Donald X. Clavin Jr.
The victim was driving south on Wantagh State Parkway on April 9 when he crossed over the center median into the northbound lanes and struck a tree, according to family and friends. First responders extricated him from the vehicle and rushed him to NUMC in East Meadow, where surgeons removed part of his skull and diagnosed him with a traumatic brain injury. Dr. Ryan Senese, a trauma surgeon treating the victim, wrote in an April 28 affidavit that he sustained intracranial bleeding, brain swelling and the midline of his brain shifted “massively.” The victim also suffered spinal cord trauma and two collapsed lungs, and has remained in a coma since the crash.
The court order provides a 24-hour window for the victim’s parents to transport their son to New Beginnings, a Wading River nonprofit that provides long-term rehabilitation services to survivors of traumatic brain injury and other cognitive and physical disorders. If the family cannot facilitate the move or decides against the transport, the hospital will conduct neurological tests at 5:01 p.m. to determine whether the victim can be declared legally brain dead. The hospital would then give the family one hour to pay their final respects before removing all life preserving services, according to the court order.
On April 10, NUMC’s treatment team determined that the victim met the criteria for neurological brain death and sought to conduct a series of tests to verify that conclusion, records show. However, the victim’s mother objected to the tests, arguing they would violate her religious beliefs as a devout Christian. She also contends the hospital was not giving her son sufficient time to recover and regain brain function. The family last week secured a temporary restraining order preventing the hospital from conducting the tests until the victim was examined by a private neurologist. The results of that examination were inconclusive, family members told Newsday Tuesday.
“We have reached a compromise today that allows the family some time to seek alternative care and for them to pay their respects should that be needed,” said Sonal Jain, an attorney for the family, following a court hearing in Mineola on Tuesday. “Given the tragic circumstances, the family is comfortable with the compromise reached today.”
But some family members expressed trepidation about moving the victim within the court-ordered timeframe. The transport must be arranged, paid for and implemented exclusively by the family, according to the order. “We’re trying but there is a lot we have to do in such a short period of time,” said the victim’s uncle, who was joined by dozens of friends and family members at the hearing. “His mother doesn’t feel confident we can get it done given the time frame we have. But we’re going to try.”
Location & Road Context
The crash occurred on Wantagh State Parkway, a major north-south thoroughfare on Long Island that connects the Southern State Parkway to Jones Beach State Park. The parkway serves as a crucial route for both commuters and beachgoers, particularly during warmer months. The victim was traveling southbound when he crossed the center median into oncoming northbound traffic before striking a tree, illustrating the severity of median crossover accidents on Long Island’s parkway system.
Investigation & Legal Proceedings
The case has evolved from a traffic accident investigation into a complex legal battle over medical decision-making and religious beliefs. Dr. Ryan Senese argued in court papers that the victim has shown no brainstem activity since April 10. “It is the unified opinion of the treatment team that his brain is not viable,” Senese wrote in his affidavit. “Since April 10, 2026… significant amounts of skin covering the cranium have become necrotic and he has shown no evidence of movement suggestive of brain activity.” Senese argued that an apnea or brain perfusion test, which is needed to determine if someone can be declared legally brain dead, “is necessary and unavoidable.”
However, medical professionals at New Beginnings strongly disagreed with NUMC’s assessment. Dr. Alexander Scheer, the facility’s medical director who attended Tuesday’s hearing, stated: “From a brain death protocol, he does not meet the qualifications. He is not dead. He needs time for his brain to heal. It’s a 3-week-old injury. I’ve seen miracle after miracle. You have to give them a chance to recover.”