Man found guilty on 10 charges in officer’s death

An Oakdale man was convicted of 10 charges in the death of a Nassau police officer, but he was cleared of the top and most serious charge. The jury found that 28-year-old James Ryan should serve up

News 12 Staff

Feb 12, 2016, 3:51 AM

Updated 3,143 days ago

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An Oakdale man was convicted of 10 charges in the death of a Nassau police officer, but he was cleared of the top and most serious charge.
The jury found that 28-year-old James Ryan should serve up to 20 years in prison for the vehicular death of Officer Joseph Olivieri.
Prosecutors said James Ryan was intoxicated when he caused two accidents on the Long Island Expressway back in October of 2012. Officer Olivieri was responding to those accidents when he was fatally struck by another driver, Francis Belizaire.
Ryan was found not guilty of aggravated vehicular homicide. He was found guilty of other charges that included criminally negligent homicide, aggravated criminally negligent homicide, vehicular manslaughter, manslaughter and DWI.
Ryan's defense attorney said he will be appealing the decision.
The Olivieri family had no comment after the verdict.
Prosecutors said the verdict should be a message to those who may decide to drive drunk.
"When you drive drunk, and you drive reckless, then you are criminally responsible for the outcome," said Nassau District Attorney Madeline Singas.