By Angela Marshall
The accident, which Nassau County police are calling a road rage incident, occurred Tuesday morning, Nov. 18, when Damiani and Kazu Amano, 22, were leaving the college campus. Amano has been charged with second-degree reckless assault, and was released on $10,000 bond over $5,000 cash bail.
Detective Lt. Dennis Farrell said Damiani was stopped behind Amano at the stoplight at the corner of Earle Ovington Boulevard and Hempstead Turnpike. When the light turned green, Damiani apparently became impatient, Farrell said, and began honking at Amano. They both made a left turn, heading eastbound on Hempstead Turnpike, and began to engage in a game of Òtit for tat, accelerating and cutting each other off, police said.
As they neared Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Amano is alleged to have cut Damiani off one last time, causing the teen to lose control and hit the light post. The car, a Nissan Pathfinder, flipped, and Damiani was ejected, landing approximately 70 feet away. He suffered severe head and body trauma.
Several witnesses, who observed the reckless driving and the resulting accident, told police there was some sort of communication between the cars, probably in the form of hand gestures, Farrell said.
Amano was arraigned in First District Court in Hempstead on Nov. 19, and was scheduled for another hearing on Nov. 26. His attorney, Paul Linzer, did not return calls for comment.
Amano, who was picking up a friend at the college just prior to the incident, has a history of traffic violation convictions going back to April 23, 2000. Two tickets were for speeding, one for failing to stop at a stop sign, one for improper signaling and one for disobeying a traffic device. His license was suspended in April 2002 and restored in August of that year.
Damiani was issued tickets for failing to wear a seat belt twice in the past six months.
