Prosecutors said Joshua Alvarado was impaired by sedatives and illegal pills when his pickup truck struck John Miro in February.
MINEOLA, N.Y. — A Queens man was indicted Tuesday on manslaughter and other charges after prosecutors said he drove while heavily impaired by drugs, jumped a curb in Merrick and fatally struck Nassau County police crossing guard John Miro, 70, as Miro worked near Sunrise Highway.
The indictment raises the case from a serious traffic prosecution to a homicide case tied to the death of a public worker known in the neighborhood for helping children cross at a busy intersection. Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly said the charges reflect both the toxicology evidence and the severity of the crash. Joshua Alvarado, 30, pleaded not guilty in County Court and remained in custody after the arraignment before Judge Robert Bogle.
Prosecutors said the crash happened at about 8 a.m. on Feb. 26, when Alvarado was driving a commercial pickup truck east on Sunrise Highway toward a service call for an extermination business. According to the district attorney, he fell asleep while stopped at a red light at Merrick Avenue. When the light changed, other drivers began honking. Donnelly said the noise startled Alvarado awake, and instead of continuing straight in traffic, he drove diagonally through the intersection, veered left, mounted the curb and hit Miro on the sidewalk. “A beloved crossing guard is dead because this defendant allegedly drove while highly impaired,” Donnelly said after the indictment was announced. Miro had been clearing snow and had just finished helping children cross moments before impact, prosecutors said.
Miro suffered catastrophic injuries, including blunt-force trauma to the head, a broken hip and multiple broken ribs, according to prosecutors. He was taken to Nassau University Medical Center and rushed into surgery, but his condition worsened over the next week. He died on March 6, turning the case into one involving upgraded charges. Court papers and public statements from prosecutors say toxicology tests found Xanax, Clonazepam and what authorities described as “street Xanax,” an illegal synthetic drug, in Alvarado’s system. Donnelly said the combination left him dangerously impaired. Alvarado’s defense has previously argued that some of the substances involved were prescribed medications, but prosecutors now say the lab results point to both sedatives and illegal drugs. In court Tuesday, Alvarado entered a not guilty plea to all counts.
The indictment lists second-degree manslaughter, second-degree vehicular manslaughter, second-degree assault, two counts of driving while ability impaired by drugs and one count of driving while ability impaired by the combined influence of drugs. Prosecutors said Alvarado could face seven to 15 years in prison if he is convicted. The case has drawn sharp attention on Long Island because the victim was not a passing motorist or pedestrian crossing on his own time. Miro was on duty in Merrick, stationed at one of the community’s busiest crossings near the Long Island Rail Road station area, where schoolchildren, commuters and local workers move through every morning. His death deepened anger in a case that had already unsettled residents when he was first hospitalized in critical condition.
Miro had been working as a Nassau County crossing guard since 2023, beginning a second career after years as a tugboat operator, according to officials and local reports. Friends, co-workers and residents described him in the days after his death as calm, dependable and generous, the kind of public servant people noticed because he showed up in the same place and kept watch over the same corner in all kinds of weather. A memorial grew near the crash site after he died, with flowers and signs left at the intersection. In televised remarks, neighbors remembered him as a familiar face who looked out not only for schoolchildren but also for older residents and commuters trying to navigate traffic around the station. The picture that emerged was not of a stranger at a roadside scene, but of a worker woven into the daily routine of the block.
The legal case now moves into pretrial proceedings. Alvarado was arraigned Tuesday in Mineola and is due back in court on May 5, 2026. Prosecutors will continue turning over evidence and preparing for motion practice as the defense reviews the grand jury case and toxicology findings. The district attorney’s office said Senior Assistant District Attorney Nicole Vota of the Vehicular Crimes Bureau is handling the prosecution under bureau leadership. The defense is expected to challenge the government’s account of impairment, the sequence of events at the intersection and the degree to which the substances found in Alvarado’s blood can be tied to his driving that morning. For now, the indictment marks the formal start of the felony case that will test those questions in court.
Outside the courthouse, the emotional center of the day remained with Miro’s family and the people who knew him from the corner where he worked. Relatives attended the arraignment but did not speak publicly. Their silence stood in contrast to the forceful language from prosecutors, who framed the crash as preventable and devastating. Nearby business workers and residents have continued to describe Miro in simple terms that carried weight because they came from routine contact rather than ceremony. One gas station manager in the area said Miro regularly brought him breakfast and checked in on people around the intersection. Another resident called him “a really sweet” man. Those recollections have helped explain why a case built from court filings, blood tests and traffic facts has resonated beyond one criminal docket.
The case stood Tuesday at the indictment stage, with Alvarado pleading not guilty and the next court appearance set for May 5. For Miro’s family and the Merrick community, that date is the next public milestone in a prosecution that began with a morning crossing post and ended in a death prosecutors say never should have happened.
Author note: Last updated April 1, 2026.