A woman accused of killing an NYPD cop in a drunken hit-run didn’t bat an eyelash as she was found guilty on all charges Tuesday — while the officer’s widow burst into tears.
Jessica Beauvais, 32, of Long Island was convicted of aggravated manslaughter in the second degree along with vehicular manslaughter in the second degree and leaving the scene of an incident without reporting it in the 2021 horror that killed NYPD Officer Anastasios Tsakos on the Long Island Expressway.
Beauvais remained stoic as jurors read out the guilty verdict in the Queens Criminal Court.
Beauvais’ sentencing was scheduled for December 14. She faces up to 20 years in prison.
Outside the courtroom, defense attorney Jorge Santos was overheard telling colleagues “There wasn’t really anything we could do.”
“Tough, tough case. I’m looking forward to going to go home and crawling into bed for two weeks,” he said. “This kind of case, I don’t want to do this anymore.”
“This was a f**king awful trial. Just the nature of the trial.” Santos said, adding, “[The judge] gave us a fair trial … I can’t ask for anything more.”
Officer Tsakos’ grieving wife, Irene, has remained stoic throughout the proceedings but let out an audible cry as the verdict was read, and dropped her head into her hands. She then pushed her way across the courtroom and hugged both assistant district attorneys who prosecuted the case.
Beauvais slammed into Tsakos as he was directing traffic around an accident on the expressway at around 2 a.m. early one morning in April 2021.
The impact from Beauvais’ 2013 Volkswagen threw him high into the air, mangled his face, and tore one of his legs from his body, the courtroom heard during testimony.
“His face was split in two,” New York Presbyterian EMS Kevin Beverly testified.
Beauvais sped away from the scene without stopping.
She had been driving 81 mph on the expressway, before slowing down to about 56 mph before the collision, NYPD Sgt. Robert Denig testified.
Her blood alcohol limit was .15, nearly twice the legal limit, when she was finally apprehended and arrested.
Before jumping behind the wheel she had been recording a podcast episode, where she downed shots, drank a cocktail, and smoked from a pipe.
Jurors were shown a clip from the recording, during which she was bragged about smoking weed “every day of my life,” and drank what prosecutors described as “a strong mixed drink.”
Beauvais gave a tearful apology after her arrest in 2021.
“I’m sorry that I hit him and now he’s dead,” she said.
DEA President Paul DiGiacomo said:
“We said there would be justice for Detective Anastasios Tsakos — and today’s conviction underscores the resolve of our hero’s loved ones and family in blue. Jessica Beauvais being found guilty is a testament to the rock-solid case built by Anastasios’ fellow Detectives and the presentation by the Queens District Attorney’s Office. The only rightful piece remaining is Beauvais behind bars for life.”