Crime & Safety

Hillsborough Mom Was Drunk in Fatal Chain-Reaction Crash on I-287, Police Say

Heather Manco's blood alcohol level was 'well over the legal limit' when her car crashed in April, killing her and a Good Samaritan, according to a report.

Heather Manco, the Hillsborough woman who died in an April automobile accident along with the Good Samaritan who tried to help her, was legally drunk when her car flipped over, State Police told NJ.com.

Manco, a 37-year-old mother of two who was married to a Piscataway police officer, hit two tractor trailers parked on the side of Interstate 287 in Edison on April 16. One of the drivers, Owen Flynn, 62, of Boston, ran out to try and help Manco, but he was struck by a third tractor-trailer that also hit Manco's overturned Acura.

Police said blood tests performed on Manco showed her blood-alcohol level was "well over the legal limit for driving," according to the NJ.com report.

The family of Owen Flynn, meanwhile, hadn't received any explanations about the cause of the accident, eight months after the fatal crash. "Here we are months later and we still don’t know what happened," Flynn's sister-in-law, Laurie, told NJ.com.


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