Joseph Beer Faces Sentence In Long Island Wreck That Killed 4 Friends

MINEOLA, N.Y. (CBSNewYork/AP) — A Queens teenager involved in a fiery crash on Long Island that killed his four friends is set to be sentenced on Tuesday. Joseph Beer pleaded guilty in July to aggravated vehicular homicide. He told a Nassau County judge he had smoked marijuana and was speeding when his high-performance sports car crashed into a tree on the Southern State Parkway in October 2012. All five people inside the vehicle were ejected. Darian Ramnarine, Christopher Khan, Neal Rajaba and Peter Kanhai died. A jury in June had deadlocked on the aggravated vehicular homicide charge. A month later, Beer pleaded guilty, saying he wanted to spare the victims’ families the ordeal of a second trial. “Those were his friends you know, and I don’t think he’s thinking about anything else,” said Beer’s father Aditia Beer. But Bryant Barr, the stepfather of one of the victims, says the teen never expressed guilt or sorrow over the tragedy. “Joseph is the type of person that will come to a funeral after he was told not come,” said Barr. “Show up there anyway, very cocky and will take pictures at a funeral smiling and post them on Facebook.” Beer also pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of marijuana, something his defense argued may not have impaired him because he was a chronic user. District Attorney Kathleen Rice disagreed. “We just need Albany to act and we won’t be discussing this anywhere because it will be on an equal par with intoxication by alcohol,” she said. Beer was 17 at the time of the crash. A judge will decide Tuesday if he gets 4 years as a youthful offender. Otherwise, he’s looking at a 5-to-15 year term. Check Out These Other Stories From CBSNewYork.com: Search Continues For New Jersey Yeshiva Student Missing In