Retired Fallsburg Judge Isaac Kantrowitz today entered a plea of guilty to the unclassified misdemeanor of reckless driving as part of a plea agreement and will be sentenced by State Supreme Court Justice Stephan G. Schick on March 25.
The reckless driving charge is punishable in New York State by up to 30 days in jail and/or a maximum $300 fine.
Kantrowitz, who appeared virtually before Schick with his attorney Steve Lungen, a former Sullivan County District Attorney, was behind the wheel on June 2, 2019 in Rock Hill when he struck and killed two teenagers: Devin Zeininger and Justin Finkel.
The People were represented by Senior Assistant District Attorney Lisa Bondarenka. She asked that the sentencing be delayed so the families of the victims will have the opportunity to make statements at sentencing.
The fathers of both victims - Kevin Zeininger and Bill Finkel - and Cindy Ruff (grandmother of Devin) confirmed to The SullivanTimes late today that they were told by District Attorney Meagan Galligan that she would not accept or negotiate any plea deal without first consulting with family members.
Kantrowitz also signed a waiver of his right to a state trial, as well as a waiver of any appeal and a waiver of any further discovery in this case, according to the proceedings.
Kantrowitz was indicted by a Sullivan County grand jury in August 2020. At that time, then-District Attorney Meagan Galligan stated at a news conference that Kantrowitz was traveling at 62 miles per hour in a 45 mph zone.
But the accident reconstruction unit of the New York State Police revealed that Kantrowitz was going 70 mph five seconds before impact.
The SullivanTimes was first to report (on June 3, 2019) that Kantrowitz was involved in a pedestrian accident six months earlier, which seriously injured a woman on the same Glen Wild Road but that incident occurred in Fallsburg.