Parents tried to cover up teen's fatal hit-and-run

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Parents tried to cover up teen's fatal hit-and-run

Parents tried to cover up teen's fatal hit-and-run

BY GRACE E. MERRITT
Hartford Courant

February 15, 2007, 9:38 PM EST

STORRS, Conn. -- A Lindenhurst teenager charged in a fatal hit-and-run of a UConn freshman Jan. 20 failed to stop because he had been drinking, according to arrest affidavits that also indicate that his parents tried to help cover up the crime.

The suspect, Anthony P. Alvino, 18, a former St. Bonaventure University student who was arrested Thursday, had been to two parties at UConn the night of Jan. 19 and didn't want to stop because he had had some drinks and didn't want to get in trouble, the arrest affidavits said.

Alvino, and his girlfriend, 18-year-old UConn freshman Michele Hall, of Wantagh, a front-seat passenger in the car, surrendered Thursday. Police issued arrest warrants after a nearly monthlong, wide-reaching investigation that took police all over New England, inspecting more than 100 Nissan Armadas, piecing together 19 pieces of a smashed headlight, and using the Facebook Internet to track down leads.

Police allege that the Nissan Armada that Alvino was driving struck Carlee Wines, 19, of Manalapan, N.J., as she entered the crosswalk at North Eagleville Road near the Chemistry building about 2 a.m. Jan. 20. She was flown to Hartford Hospital but died two days later of multiple blunt force trauma, according to the affidavits.

Alvino, of 42 River St., is charged with misconduct with a motor vehicle resulting in death, evading responsibility, tampering with physical evidence, possession of alcohol by a minor, traveling unreasonably fast, failure to grant right of way to pedestrian in crosswalk and failure to drive in proper lane.

Hall, of 3647 Hunt Road, was arrested on eight charges, including aiding and abetting evading responsibility, conspiracy to commit evading responsibility, third-degree hindering prosecution and third-degree aiding and abetting identity theft.

Both posted bond and are scheduled to appear in Rockville Superior Court on Feb. 27.

A man at Alvino's home declined to comment last night. A woman who answered the phone at Hall's home hung up without commenting.

Police said more arrests are expected, not only for other passengers in the vehicle, but for other people involved. In fact, the affidavits suggest that Alvino's parents tried to cover up the accident.

According to the affidavit, when Alvino, who had returned to his university in upstate New York, told his parents about the incident, they said they would drive to St. Bonaventure the next day to talk about it. Anthony C. Alvino and his wife, Donna, drove up in their black Mercedes, picked up their son and his friends, Anthony Muccioli and Jordan P. Donahue at their dorm and drove them to the Microtel hotel near the university. Once they got to the hotel, Alvino's father said he loves his son very much and wanted to do what was best to protect him.

Donna Alvino said she had a mechanic friend from home who would fix the car "and have it detailed so that no one would be able to tell that it was involved in the incident," the affidavit said. They also told Alvino's friends that they shouldn't call their parents or tell anyone about the incident and they offered to get them a counselor so they could talk about the incident. After that they took them all out to Applebee's for dinner.

A woman who answered the phone at the Alvinos' home Thursday declined to comment.

On Thursday, Alvino's lawyer, Richard Brown said his client entered a plea of not guilty and would not be making any comments on the incident. He added that Alvino's family has cooperated from day one with the investigation and pointed out that they were the ones who turned over the damaged SUV to police.

Two 20-page arrest affidavits for Alvino and Hall give the following account:

On the night of the accident, Alvino and two friends he had brought with him from St. Bonaventure, a college in upstate New York, had gotten together with Hall and her friends to spend a long night of partying. They started in Hall's room in the Towers dormitory where guests were drinking primarily vodka mixed with Kool-Aid and orange soda. Then they went to a party at the Carriage House Apartments, just off campus for a keg party.

Later, Alvino, Hall and Alvino's two friends packed into Alvino's car and he drove them back to the Tower's dorm to pick other friends. As he drove Muccioli vomited out a back window of the car.

Muccioli was falling asleep when he heard a loud smack and the car was jolted as though it was going over a speed bump.

Alvino uttered an expletive, then said, said "Oh my God. What do I do?"

Hall yelled, "Anthony, just go, just go!"

They returned to the dorm but no one talked about the incident. Then they all went to bed and fell asleep. The next day, after learning that police were looking for the vehicle in the hit-and-run, they went out to check the car and noticed a huge dent in the front end and a cracked windshield.

Alvino and his two friends then packed their bags and drove back to St. Bonaventure. Alvino's parents eventually drove the SUV back to their house. The students debated about whether to call police about what happened and also called their parents to tell them about the accident.

Police located the make of the vehicle by tracking down the plastic headlight housing to a part from a company in Mexico that confirmed the piece would fit only a 2004-2006 Nissan Armada SUV or a 2004-2006 Nissan Titan pickup truck.

After inspecting more than 100 Nissan Armadas in Connecticut and surrounding states, police eventually got a call about the damaged vehicle from a New York lawyer representing the Alvino family.

Police tracked down Alvino's connection to UConn through his entry in Facebook, a student Internet web service, which listed Hall as his girlfriend. Police combed the SUV for evidence and found the light green wool fiber that matched the fringe of the scarf Wines had been wearing.

Thursday, the Wines family thanked police and the media for their handling of the case and said they are not seeking vengeance, but justice.

"If there were any lesson which Carlee would want to give in her death it would be to shine light on the responsibility we have to each other," they said in a press release. "…When your actions, in any way, have inflicted harm on others, stop and render aid! Heal one another! Do not run and hide from your obligations."
Copyright 2007 Newsday Inc.

Posted 2/16/07 11:06 AM