Police Chief Kenton Buckner said Thursday that the fatal crash involving Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim was a tragic accident.

Boeheim’s vehicle hit and killed 51-year-old Jorge Jimenez at about 11:20 p.m. Wednesday on Interstate 690. Jimenez was a passenger in a car that crashed into a guardrail on the eastbound lane of I-690, Lt. David Brown of the Syracuse Police Department’s traffic division said at a Thursday press conference.

Jimenez and three others exited the Dodge Charger after another oncoming vehicle — not driven by Boeheim — swerved to the right of their vehicle, which covered the entire center lane and most of the left lane of the highway, Brown said.

But Boeheim’s GMC Acadia then struck Jimenez after swerving away from the disabled vehicle. Jimenez and the three others were crossing I-690 to reach the median, according to Brown.

Syracuse Police Chief Kenton Buckner said he doesn’t expect criminal charges to be filed against Jim Boeheim or the driver of the other vehicle. Molly Gibbs | Photo Editor

Buckner said both drivers passed sobriety tests and that SPD has no reason to believe either driver was impaired.

“I’ve known coach Boeheim for 40 years,” Onondaga County District Attorney William Fitzpatrick said at the press conference. “He does not drink alcohol.”

One other person was injured in the crash, Brown said, and was believed to have sustained only “minor injuries” after being struck by the rearview mirror of Boeheim’s vehicle, Brown said. Jimenez was transported to Upstate University Hospital where he was later pronounced dead, and the three others in that vehicle were transported to St. Joseph’s Hospital. The other three people in the vehicle were between 49 and 50 years old, Brown said.

SPD officers interviewed Boeheim at the scene, and he was transported to the Public Safety Building in downtown Syracuse and further interviewed, Brown said. Boeheim’s transport was “in large part for safety sake due to the conditions of the roadway,” Brown said.

While at the scene, Boeheim tried to aid Jimenez and used the flashlight on his phone to warn others drivers to avoid the crash, Buckner said at the press conference. Boeheim also made a 911 call at the scene following the crash, but Fitzpatrick and Brown were both unsure as to what sequence Boeheim’s call was received, saying the department received “multiple calls” about the incident.

“Considering the conditions of the roadway, the darkness of the night, that stretch of highway — with that small rise being just before the crash scene — it would be difficult to see other vehicles,” Brown said.

Buckner said Boeheim has cooperated throughout the entirety of the investigation. Buckner and Fitzpatrick both said that they don’t expect criminal charges to be filed against the drivers of either car.

SPD has interviewed two of the three occupants in the car with Jimenez in addition to Boeheim, Buckner said. The department is also searching for any footage of the crash, as well as additional witnesses who may help determine the cause of the initial accident and the crash that followed involving Boeheim, Brown said.

Onondaga County District Attorney William Fitzpatrick (right) said the crash was a “horrible, sad tragedy.” Molly Gibbs | Photo Editor

Fitzpatrick said Boeheim and the driver of the other vehicle are required to attend a hearing to determine any penalties to their licenses — including a possible revocation — but he said that, based on the information that SPD currently has, any penalty to each of their driving rights is unlikely.

Brown said SPD has not determined how long the disabled car was in the middle of I-690 or how fast either of the vehicles were traveling at the times of the respective crashes.

An employee at Erie Car Care Center on Thursday said he received a call at about 1:40 a.m. Thursday to retrieve the Dodge Charger. Another driver from John’s Auto Body retrieved Boeheim’s vehicle, the employee said. He said he arrived at the scene at about 2 a.m. and all civilians were cleared by that point, with only police remaining.

Brown said he believes everyone involved in the crash acted appropriately, and the decision to leave the vehicle by the four in the Dodge Charger was “very situational as to what would be the best course of action” and he “can understand” why they chose that course of action.

“Based upon what we know today,” Buckner said, “we have a tragic accident that resulted in a gentleman’s death that happened to involve a high-profile individual.”

Published on February 21, 2019 at 8:39 pm

Contact Michael: mmcclear@syr.edu | @MikeJMcCleary