Foreign National Pleads Guilty To DUI Crash That Hurt 4 Neshaminy Students

A United Kingdom citizen who caused a violent wreck that nearly killed him, his friend, and several innocent people admitted to causing the crash.

Before Bucks County Judge Jeffrey Finley at the Justice Center Thursday morning, Shane Brolly, 24, a foreign national who was living in Philadelphia, pleaded guilty to numerous charges, including aggravated assault by vehicle while DUI, accidents involving injury, DUI, and related offenses. Someone facing DUI charges numerous times is quite serious, and giving him a chance again can cost lives.

Finley ordered a presentence investigation before sentencing takes place.

Brolly admitted to being drunk behind the wheel of his cousin’s 2013 GMC Sierra pickup truck after a day of drinking in Philadelphia.

Brolly and a friend were traveling northbound on Bridgetown Pike near Playwicki Farm in Northampton Township when the pickup struck a southbound vehicle after crossing the center line around 10:12 p.m. on Saturday, March 27, 2021. A third vehicle was then involved in the wreck.

Lab test results showed Brolly had a blood-alcohol content of 0.21 percent after the crash. The legal limit for operating a vehicle in Pennsylvania is .08 percent, authorities said.

The pickup truck head-on struck a 2019 Mazda CX5 with Neshaminy High School students Julia Aquilone, Julianna Mazzoni, Angelique Corsino, and Taylor Donnelly inside. The girls, then 17, suffered life-threatening injuries that have changed their lives and continue to require medical care and rehabilitation.

Authorities said in a court filing that Brolly attempted to pass an Nissan SUV by crossing lanes in the area that is a no-passing zone. While attempting to pass the vehicle, Brolly’s pickup truck struck the CX5 with the teens inside. The force of the crash pushed the CX5 50 feet and caused it to roll over.

Bucks County Deputy District Attorney Robert James detailed the numerous injuries – ranging from fractures to brain damage – suffered by the girls.

The investigating officer made note in an affidavit that they “observed significant damage to all three vehicles involved in this crash, consistent with a high-speed impact.”

Brolly was hospitalized with injuries and his passenger suffered “serious internal injuries” that required emergency surgery.

Bucks County Rangers Chief Steven Mawhinney, an experienced crash investigator who leads a countywide team, detailed Brolly’s actions in the seconds leading up to the crash.

Vehicle data and other evidence showed Brolly was driving at 57 mph and the accelerator was pushed almost as far as it could go five seconds before impact. At 1.5 seconds before impact, Brolly was driving with the pedal to the floor and the pickup had reached 70 mph. He let off the gas but failed to hit the brakes 1 second before the crash on the windy two-lane road.

Evidence showed the girls hit the brakes as they saw Brolly heading toward them. Mawhinney wrote the girl’s actions “likely saved lives.”

Authorities suspect Brolly had 14 to 22 drinks in the hours before the crash. He drank hard seltzers with a friend as they hit golf balls and went to two bars. At one city bar, Brolly drank beer and took shots until he was cut off by a bartender.

After being cut off, one of Brolly’s friends and a bystander tried to stop him from driving. His other friend jumped into the pickup and the two headed off to Bucks County.

James said the bystander offered to pay for a ride-share for Brolly so he wouldn’t take to the street while intoxicated.

James noted Brolly texted his cousin, who owned the pickup, and told him hours before the crash that he was too drunk to drive. He promised to return the pickup the next day.

Brolly was in the country after his work visa expired and he didn’t have a license to drive.

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In addition to his expected jail time in the U.S., Brolly is wanted out of Northern Ireland for a criminal conviction he fled when he came to America.

The Belfast, Northern Ireland-based Sunday Life tabloid reported Brolly fled the territory that is part of the United Kingdom while awaiting sentencing in a case where he led police on a 16-mile chase where speeds reached 114 mph after drinking in June 2019.

Brolly, according to Sunday Life, pleaded guilty to charges that included dangerous driving and driving with excess alcohol in September 2019.

Brolly will remain in prison until his sentencing in Bucks County. Federal immigration officials have already met with him.

James told the victims they will be able to submit or read victim impact statements to the judge when Brolly’s sentencing arrives.

Julia Aquilone, who was seriously hurt in the crash and just recently underwent a bone graft surgery, was in court in her wheelchair with her parents by her side.

She called the guilty plea “overwhelming” and the start of the pathway toward closure for her.

The teen’s most recent surgery has put her back to square one on her recovery and she may face future surgeries.

The crash, she said, has greatly impacted her life and may cause her to have to forgo attending her dream college of Penn State University due to the distance she would have to travel on large campus.

Carin O’Donnell, a Stark and Stark attorney representing the family of the teen, said the crash has hurt the teenager in so many ways.

“This nightmare is not over,” O’Donnell said.

The victims have thanked the community for the support since the crash.

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