Fatal Route 571 Crash: 34-Year-Old Woman Sentenced for Two Deaths

Toms River Woman Convicted on Two Counts of Vehicular Homicide

Fatal Route 571 Crash: 34-Year-Old Woman Sentenced for Two Deaths

The Ocean County Prosecutor's Office said on Friday that a woman from Ocean County who was found guilty of killing two individuals in a 2022 collision on Manchester's Route 571 has been given a probationary sentence.

Superior Court Judge Dina M. Vicari sentenced Danielle M. Bowker, 34, to five years of probation and revoked her driving privileges for two years on Friday, according to Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer.

Following a five-week trial before Vicari, Bowker, a resident of Manchester's Pine Lake Park neighborhood, was found guilty on October 2 of two charges of third-degree vehicular manslaughter in the March 2022 collision that claimed the lives of Toms River residents Paul Lamberti, 58, and Michael Sadis, 48.

According to the prosecutor's office, the prosecution had sought for a three-year jail sentence for each count of vehicular manslaughter and wanted the sentences to be served consecutively.

On March 29, 2022, at around 7:15 a.m., a collision occurred on Route 571 close to Whitesville Road.

According to the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office, Bowker drifted out of her lane on the bend close to Whitesville Road while traveling west on Route 571 in a 2018 Honda Civic.

Eduardo Rivera, 30, of Hamilton Township, was operating a Ford F-550 pickup truck belonging by the New Jersey Department of Transportation when her vehicle struck it. According to the prosecutor's office, Rivera, his passenger, and Daniel Septor, 26, of Upper Freehold Township's Cream Ridge neighborhood, received minor injury treatment at Community Medical Center.

A 2012 Toyota Camry was struck by the Ford F-550 and forced off the road into an embankment. Sadis, the driver of the Camry, passed away there, according to the officials.

Lamberti's 2015 Toyota Corolla was then struck by the Ford F-550. According to the prosecutor's office, he was transported to Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune, where he passed away a few days after the collision.

The prosecutor's office revealed in June 2022 that Bowker was a "recent, active user of marijuana" at the time of the collision, with lab testing revealing an active THC (marijuana) level of 7 nanograms (ng) and a metabolite THC level of 61 ng.

According to the prosecutor's office, the level was sufficient to render Bowker incapable of driving safely due to the consequences of marijuana intoxication, according to the state's psychopharmacologist.

Bowker was taken to Community Medical Center for treatment after suffering minor injuries in the collision, and she was later released.

On June 21, 2022, Bowker was charged with two counts of Vehicular Homicide in the second-degree, two counts of Strict Liability Vehicular Homicide, and two counts of Assault by Auto, all in connection with the subject motor vehicle crash. On that same date, she surrendered herself to Manchester Township Police Headquarters in the presence of her attorney.

She was transported to the Ocean County Jail and later released as a consequence of New Jersey Bail Reform. Bowker was indicted on the foregoing charges on February 15, 2023, and all charges were presented to the jury for their consideration at trial.