Driver Sentenced After Atlantic Avenue Pedestrian Death
A westbound driver in a sedan hit and killed 31-year-old Katherine Harris at Atlantic Avenue and Clinton Street as she crossed with the signal, and prosecutors later said Erick Trujillo was drunk and driving 72 mph.
What We Know
On April 16, 2023, a westbound driver in a Volvo sedan hit 31-year-old pedestrian Katherine Harris at Atlantic Avenue and Clinton Street in Brooklyn as she was crossing with the signal, according to city crash data and police accounts. Prosecutors later said Erick Trujillo had a .17 blood alcohol level, was driving 72 mph in a 25 mph zone, and went through a red light before hitting Harris and then rear-ending another driver. Harris was pronounced dead at the scene. Trujillo pleaded guilty to manslaughter and was sentenced in 2025 to three to nine years in prison.
A driver hit Harris as she crossed with the signal
City crash data records a fatal pedestrian collision at 9:58 p.m. on April 16, 2023, at Atlantic Avenue and Clinton Street, and lists Harris as crossing with the signal at the intersection.
Police told Brooklyn Paper that Erick Taxilaga Trujillo, then 27, was speeding in a black Volvo, ran a solid red light, and hit Harris in the marked intersection. The official vehicle record for the Volvo lists alcohol involvement and traffic-control disregard.
Atlantic Avenue is a high-crash corridor
The official record places the fatal collision at Atlantic Avenue and Clinton Street in Brooklyn.
CrashCountNYC location context identifies Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn as a corridor with 4,096 crashes, 2,408 injuries, 109 serious injuries, and 10 deaths since 2022.
Katherine Harris was steps from home
The Daily News reported that Harris, 31, was a skin care technician and makeup artist who was just steps from home when the driver hit her. Friends and family described her as an outgoing, loyal friend from Dutchess County who loved living in the city.
Her mother, Kim Harris, told the Daily News, "She was a phenomenon, a force to be reckoned with." Harris' boyfriend, Chris Kosar, wrote in a victim impact statement that she "knew how to have fun, but she also had a work ethic that was admirable and inspiring."
Prosecutors cited intoxication and extreme speed
The Daily News reported that a blood alcohol test showed Trujillo had a .17 blood alcohol level, nearly twice the .08 legal limit, and that investigators determined he was driving 72 mph in a 25 mph zone.
The official crash record lists alcohol involvement for the collision, and the official vehicle record for the Volvo lists alcohol involvement and traffic-control disregard.
Trujillo pleaded guilty and was sentenced
Brooklyn Paper reported that NYPD officers arrested Trujillo after the crash on charges including manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, driving while ability impaired, and refusal to take a breath test.
The Daily News later reported that Trujillo pleaded guilty to manslaughter and was sentenced to three to nine years in prison. Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said Trujillo "made a disastrous decision when he got behind the wheel of a car while intoxicated."
A local official called for safety changes
Council Member Lincoln Restler called the death "tragic" and "avoidable" and said traffic calming and safety improvements on Atlantic Avenue were a top priority.