A Plainview woman pleaded guilty Sept. 21 to manslaughter and other charges stemming from an August 2025 crash in East Meadow that killed a 55-year-old man and injured two others.
Cassandra Panetta, 41, pleaded guilty before Judge Helene Gugerty to second-degree manslaughter, a felony; second-degree assault, a felony; and driving while ability impaired by drugs, a misdemeanor.
Panetta is expected to be sentenced to four to 12 years in prison when she returns to court Dec. 8. The Nassau County district attorney’s office has recommended a sentence of six to 12 years.
At about 1 p.m. on Aug. 10, 2025, Panetta was driving a 2021 Nissan Maxima on Carman Avenue toward her Plainview home, according to the district attorney’s office.
As she approached a steady red light at the intersection of Carman Avenue and Salisbury Park Drive, another vehicle carrying three people was making a left turn through a green light from Salisbury Park Drive onto Carman Avenue.
Panetta drove through the red light without braking and struck the rear driver’s side of the other vehicle as it made the turn, prosecutors said. The victims’ vehicle sustained extensive damage.
A backseat passenger, Steven Diamond, 55, was in cardiac arrest when paramedics arrived. He was taken to Nassau University Medical Center in East Meadow, where he was pronounced dead at 3:13 p.m.
The vehicle’s driver suffered a concussion, and a front-seat passenger sustained minor injuries. Panetta fractured her wrist.
Blood drawn from Panetta at the hospital tested positive for methamphetamine and amphetamine, according to prosecutors.
“Steven Diamond was on his way to spend a summer afternoon at the beach with friends, but because of this defendant’s careless actions, he sadly never made it there,” Nassau County District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly said. “High on methamphetamine in the middle of the day, Cassandra Panetta got behind the wheel, plowed through a red light, and crashed into the car where Steven was riding in the back seat, taking his life in an instant. Our hearts are with his family as they continue to grieve this immeasurable loss, and we hope today’s guilty plea gives them some measure of justice knowing the defendant will spend the next several years answering for this senseless tragedy.”
Panetta was arrested Oct. 17, 2025, by members of the Nassau County Police Department’s Homicide Squad.
Senior Assistant District Attorney James Taglienti of the Vehicular Crimes Bureau is prosecuting the case under the supervision of bureau Chief Michael Bushwack and Executive Assistant District Attorney Daryl Levy, who oversees the Litigation Division. Panetta is represented by attorney Marc Gann.
