By PHILIP MESSING, PATRICK GALLAHUE and MARK BULLIET
New York Post
An off-duty NYPD detective who refused to take a breath test faces a DWI charge after a crash in Queens landed him and the driver of an oncoming car in the hospital, police said yesterday.
John Duggan, 41, was driving on Woodhaven Boulevard in Middle Village at about 11 p.m. Thursday when he tried to turn left onto Furmanville Avenue. He smashed into a Honda Civic coming in the opposite direction, which was driven by Nickossi Mathurin, of Ozone Park.
Cops charged Duggan with drunken driving on the basis of witness statements that his breath reeked of booze.
But Duggan refused to take a field breath test - and investigators’ efforts to check his blood for alcohol were blocked by Queens Judge Robert McGann, who ruled that the smell of his breath wasn’t enough for a search warrant, police sources said.
Because Duggan suffered a broken ankle and head injuries, witnesses couldn’t say whether he showed other signs of drunkenness, such as unsteadiness or slurring, police said.
Despite that setback, cops decided that “additional witness statements” adequately support the drunken driving charge.
Duggan, a detective in the 46th Precinct in The Bronx, was listed in stable condition last night in Elmhurst Hospital. A woman who answered the door at his home in Maspeth declined comment.
Mathurin, 23, was listed in critical condition last night in Elmhurst Hospital, where relatives said he was being treated for facial injuries, a broken right arm, and two broken knees.
Relatives said his situation seemed to be improving last night. “He’s moving in the right direction,” said Wendy Younge, an aunt.
“I’m just hoping and praying that he comes through this,” said his dad, Brian.
Brian Mathurin said he was disappointed that Duggan was accused of driving drunk. “I expect better,” he said.
Relatives said Mathurin has been his family’s rock of strength in the five months since his mother died of a heart attack.
“He was taking care of his dad, keeping him sane,” said Noreen Younge, another aunt.
Copyright 2007 New York Post