Woman Who Killed Mother And Two Daughters In Bayside Crash Gets Up To 22 Years In Prison

BAYSIDE, QUEENS — A woman who killed a mother and her two daughters in a Bayside car crash will serve up to 22 years in prison.

Deborah Burns, 48, of Jackson Heights, was found guilty of three counts of manslaughter and two counts of assault, according to Queens District Attorney Richard Brown. She was sentenced to serve between five and 15 years for the manslaughter charges and another seven years for the assault charges.

Burns was speeding down 210th Street, directly behind public school M.S. 74, when she veered into oncoming traffic and crashed into another car, driven by 75-year-old Young Ju Ha, according to Brown. Investigators said she was traveling at 60 miles per hour in the 15 mile per hour zone.

Ju Ha's car hit a tree. Two of the three backseat passengers, his daughter Susanna Ha and her 10-year-old daughter Angelica Ung, died within hours of the crash, Brown said. The third, Ha's second daughter Michelle Ung, 8, died three days later.

Ju Ha and his wife Chung Ock Ha, 67, sustained severe injuries, according to Brown.

Burns said she had dropped off her kids at basketball practice and was circling the block looking for a parking spot, court records showed. She said she was driving at 40 miles per hour when Ju Ha swerved into the wrong lane, which caused Burns to hit the car. However, surveillance footage refuted her claims.

“This was a senseless tragedy that did not have to happen. The defendant caused a horrific crash that took the lives of a mother and her two young children," said Brown.

"A vehicle is not a toy and should be driven with the greatest of care at all times. The defendant’s actions caused immeasurable agony to the victims’ family."

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