Middlesex County Acting Prosecutor Christopher L.C. Kuberiet announced that a Paterson woman has pleaded guilty in causing the death of an 80-year-old man and injuring another in a crash on Route 1 in North Brunswick shortly after midnight on September 22, 2018.
According to officials Elizabeth Gomez, age 43, of Paterson, the operator of the car, pleaded guilty on December 23, 2019, to second-degree vehicular homicide and driving while intoxicated.
Officials say under a plea agreement reached with Middlesex County Assistant Prosecutor Keith Abrams, Gomez will be sentenced to a prison term of up to 10 years for causing the crash that killed Wen-Fu Lin, age 80, of East Brunswick and injured a 47-year old male passenger in the victim’s car.
This term is subject to the No Early Release Act. As such, the defendant will have to serve 85 percent of her prison term before becoming eligible for parole.
In addition, Gomez will be subject to a loss of license upon her release from prison, ranging from 5 years to life to be determined at sentencing.
Gomez was arrested and charged as a result of an investigation by Officer Jason Zier of the North Brunswick Police Department and Detective David Abromaitis of the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office.
The investigation determined that in the early morning hours of September 22, 2018, Gomez, who was intoxicated, was driving a 2007 BMW X3 on Route 1 near Fashion Plaza Drive when she ran a red light and crashed into a 2016 Chevrolet Malibu causing the death of the driver and injuring his passenger.
Gomez is scheduled to be sentenced in New Brunswick by Superior Court Judge Colleen M. Flynn on March 4, 2020.