East Brunswick, NJ – As the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office continues to investigate the cause of last week’s horrific crash that took the lives of a well loved East Brunswick couple walking home from Shul and injured four others, officials have identified the driver in the deadly accident.
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No charges have been filed yet against 49 year old Naglaa Armanious of East Brunswick who, according to authorities crashed into a utility pole before hitting the five pedestrians walking home from the Young Israel of East Brunswick, as previously reported on VIN News. Armanious’ 1998 Toyota Avalon hit the telephone pole so hard that pictures of the accident scene show the pole lying on the ground, sheared in two by the force of the impact.
Authorities continue to investigate whether or not Armanious’ dog, who was in the car, played any role in the fatal accident according to reports on myCentralJersey.com. New Jersey does have a law prohibiting transporting animals in vehicles in an inhumane fashion and pending legislation introduced by Essex County Assemblywoman Grace Spencer would require pets to be restrained in the backseat of a moving vehicle, if approved. According to ABC News, Arizona, Maine, Connecticut and Hawaii already have legislation prohibiting drivers from operating a motor vehicle with a pet on their lap and Rhode Island and Oregon are considering similar laws.
In a release dated May 30, 2012, New Jersey’s Motor Vehicle Commission urged motorists to properly restrain all pets in their cars. N.J.S.A. 4:22-18 gives SPCA officers the right to pull over motorists who improperly transport animals and issue tickets with fines ranging from $250 to $1000 and drivers can also be charged with a disorderly person’s offense under the New Jersey animal cruelty laws. A 2011 AAA survey found that sixty five percent of drivers engaged in at least one distracting act when they had a pet in their vehicle with them.
For the Jewish community of East Brunswick, life will never be the same, as community residents grieve for their unfathomable loss while they continue to pray for a refuah sheleima for the other three others who were injured in the crash: Dr. Harris Bram, Hadar Bram and the Horowitz’s only son, Ami.
Ami Horowitz is recuperating at Robert Wood Johnson Hospital after undergoing two surgeries this week and is expected to be released soon to a local rehabilitation center. Pictures on Horowitz’s Facebook page show bandages on both his arm and his foot and childhood friend Ben Stern told VIN News that he spent almost all of Rosh Hashana in the hospital with Horowitz who had several plates and screws implanted in his arm and his ankle to repair the damage caused by the accident.
“It is going to be a long haul for Ami but he is doing well,” said one East Brunswick resident.
The 27 year old Horowitz moved to Israel ten years ago and is currently a resident of Ramat Gan, where he graduated recently from Bar Ilan University with a Masters in History.
49 year old Hadar Bram is expected to be released from the hospital later today. 52 year old Dr. Harris Bram, co-founder of Spine and Pain Medicine in Shrewsbury and the Vice-President of the New Jersey Chapter of the American Society of Interventional Pain Practitioners, continues to recover at Robert Wood Johnson Hospital.
One congregant at the Young Israel described the levaya, held on Erev Rosh Hashana.
“The mood was somber as the entire community was in a state of shock, disbelief, hoping this was all a dream/nightmare,” Scott Grayman told VIN News. “Unfortunately, in the past, we have experienced the untimely and sudden loss of Shul members, however, this tragedy was most difficult to comprehend. Both Ari and Sari’s parents were present and to see parents lose children is heart wrenching and when compounded as this was, the feelings were exponential. Rabbi Jay Weinstein acknowledged the feelings we all are experiencing, but as we all knew, he could not offer answers as to why something like this could happen to the golden souls of the Horowitz’s. It’s hard to bear but we’re challenged to dig real deep for the amount of emunah necessary under these circumstances.”
Rosh Hashana at the Young Israel was particularly emotional.
“We davened on Rosh Hashanah with heavy hearts,” observed Grayman. “We were all especially reflective during the holiday and I’m sure the hugs we shared with family and friends were stronger and with greater meaning than in past years. Yom Kippur, Sukkot, Simchat Torah, Chanukah, Purim, Pesach, Shavuot, they will all be very different, but we are a resilient people that continues forward through happiness and sadness, simcha and sorrow.”
According to Grayman over one hundred people turned out for a second funeral in Israel, which included family, neighbors, friends, students from the Young Israel who are attending Israeli yeshivas and representative from the many organizations supported by the Horowitz’s. A program featuring Dr. Norman Blumenthal of Chai Lifeline was held at the Young Israel on Wednesday in order to help parents and children deal with after effects of the tragedy.
The Horowitz’s daughter Natanya Tropp flew in this morning from Israel to sit Shiva with her grandparents at the home of Marcia and Andrew Freedman. Marcia Freedman had previously been married to Ari’s only sibling Neil Horowitz, who tragically was also killed in a car accident close to thirty years ago as he drove to the hospital to meet his newly born daughter. According to Stern, the Horowitz’s and the Freedmans have remained close throughout the years.
Nachmu, nachmu Ami…
Refuah Sheleimah to all.
This horrible accidents shows that our fate is in the hands of Hashem; life is very precious, and short, and we should appreciate every minute of it. About fifteen years ago, I was also walking home from Shul, and was on the sidewalk. All of a sudden, a car in very close proximity to where we were waling, mounted the sidewalk in front of us, completely out of control. The driver, who was an elderly man, was either unconcscious or deceased, as he was leaning against the steering wheel. We were extremely fortunate, as the car couldn’t have been more than 25-30 feet in front of us. There was a question as to whether or not that I should have benched Hagomel, but I did it, after consulting with the Rabbi.