(SUFFOLK COUNTY, N.Y.) – Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney today announced that Jason Jean-Joseph, 24, of West Babylon, pleaded guilty to Manslaughter in the Second Degree and Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree, and other related charges, for driving at high rates of speed in Wyandanch in an attempt to avoid law enforcement which resulted in a crash where pedestrian Hillel Fuld, 29, of New York City, was struck and killed.
“Fleeing from the police puts the lives of everyone in danger. Here, this defendant’s dangerous and reckless choice killed a 29-year-old man simply out jogging,” said District Attorney Tierney. “Nothing can bring back Hillel Fuld, but today’s plea affirms that the defendant will be held accountable for his unconscionable actions.”
According to court documents and the defendant’s statements during his guilty plea allocution, on June 13, 2025, just before 7:30 p.m., in Wyandanch, police attempted to initiate a traffic stop of Jean-Joseph, who was driving a 2018 BMW 5 Series. The defendant, whose driver’s license was suspended, saw the marked unit’s lights activate and accelerated away from the police vehicle. As the defendant turned onto Wyandanch Avenue, he accelerated in an eastbound direction and struck a jogger, Hillel Fuld.
The defendant left the victim lying in the roadway and fled from the scene without pulling over to check on his well-being. The victim was brought to Good Samaritan University Hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Following the crash, the defendant drove his vehicle to a location in Babylon and left it on the side of the road. When he fled the vehicle, he also discarded a loaded 9mm pistol containing a high-capacity magazine in the wooded area south of John Street. Following an investigation, the defendant was arrested on August 29, 2025, by Suffolk County police.
On March 31, 2026, Jean-Joseph pleaded guilty to the following charges before Acting Supreme Court Justice Anthony S. Senft, Jr.:
· One count of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree, a Class C violent felony;
· One count of Manslaughter in the Second Degree, a Class C felony;
· One count of Assault in the Second Degree, a Class D violent felony;
· One count of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Third Degree, a Class D felony;
· One count of Leaving the Scene of an Incident Without Reporting, a Class D felony;
· One count of Unlawful Fleeing a Police Officer in the First Degree, a Class D felony; and
· One count of Reckless Driving, an Unclassified misdemeanor.
Jean-Joseph is due back in court for sentencing on May 1, 2026. He is being represented by Keith O’Halloran, Esq.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Alexander Bopp of the Vehicular Crime Bureau, and the investigation was conducted by Detective Richard Hennes of the Suffolk County Police Department’s Major Case Unit.
