Quantcast

The DNAinfo archives brought to you by WNYC.
Read the press release here.

50-Year-Old Father Hit and Killed by SUV on Harlem River Drive, Cops Say

By  Trevor Kapp and Aidan Gardiner | April 25, 2013 7:27am | Updated on April 25, 2013 12:55pm

 Stanley Williams, seen here in a photo from several years ago, was struck by a Chevrolet SUV while crossing Harlem River Drive Wednesday night.
Stanley Williams, seen here in a photo from several years ago, was struck by a Chevrolet SUV while crossing Harlem River Drive Wednesday night.
View Full Caption
Courtesy Josette Ceruuti

EAST HARLEM — A 50-year-old man who was trying to rekindle his relationship with his 11-year-old son was struck and killed by an SUV as he tried to cross the Harlem River Drive late Wednesday night, cops said.

Stanley Williams was trying to walk westbound across the Harlem River Drive at 135th Street when a Chevrolet SUV struck him about 11 p.m., according to the NYPD.

Williams's head was badly injured and when he reached Harlem Hospital Center, he was pronounced dead, police said.

The 31-year-old driver remained on the scene and it did not appear that cops suspected any criminality.

"He had a good heart. Anyone who knows Stanley couldn't say nothing bad about him," said Williams' ex-girlfriend, Josette Ceruti. "It's truly a tragedy. It's a freak accident. It's heartbreaking."

Cerutti said Williams had recently begun to reconnect with his 11-year-old son.

"They were just reuniting to a nice relationship," said Ceruti, 45. "He always told him he wanted him to be a better man than he was."

Ceruti said she didn't know why Williams was trying to cross the busy roadway late Wednesday night.

"All we know is he was just trying to get from one side to the next," she said.

Her son, who shares the same name as the victim, heard Ceruti weeping Thursday morning, but she couldn't bring herself to tell him what had happened.

"I tried to convince him he was dreaming," she said.