Legal experts say the former NYPD detective accused of killing a beloved father and Con Edison employee in a George Washington Bridge road-rage shooting may have avoided a murder charge because prosecutors believe the confrontation was spontaneous rather than planned.
The family of Koran Irvine has questioned why retired officer Victor Romero was charged with first-degree manslaughter in connection with Tuesday evening’s fatal encounter on the New Jersey-bound side of the bridge, where the two drivers nearly collided.
Michael Bachner, a defense attorney with no ties to the case, said the charge did not come as a surprise because prosecutors could face difficulty proving that Romero meant to kill Irvine.
“The District Attorney’s office was under the theory that this arose out of an altercation with some lack of premeditation, lack of planning,” Bachner said.
“It was a road rage incident where the guy went to get his gun without an intention to kill. There was no proof there was an intention to kill the guy.”
According to prosecutors, Romero, 62, allegedly drove closely behind Irvine, a 46-year-old father of two, before pulling alongside his vehicle and firing a shot.
Irvine’s car then came to an abrupt stop, triggering a traffic backup. About 40 seconds later, the vehicle moved across several lanes and struck a median, according to the criminal complaint.
Prosecutors said Romero left the bridge after the shooting and was arrested later.
Bachner said a second-degree murder case would require prosecutors to establish that Romero acted with depraved indifference to human life, a more demanding standard than first-degree manslaughter. Under the manslaughter charge, prosecutors would need to prove that Romero intended to cause physical injury and that the injury led to Irvine’s death.
“It sounds to me, it smells to me, more like he consciously disregarded a risk rather than he acted with a depraved indifference to human life,” Bachner said.
“I see why [Manhattan DA Alvin] Bragg made this decision,” the attorney added.
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“I understand the outrage over it, but I think it really does fit more into the manslaughter mold than it does into the murder charge.”
Robert Gottlieb, another veteran New York defense lawyer, said he was “surprised” by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s decision.
“Just relying on what’s alleged in the complaint, there is more than enough to have charged him with murder,” Gottlieb said.
“I have seen people charged with murder under less powerful evidence of depraved indifference murder.”
Irvine’s aunt, Gale Ford, expressed her anger outside court Thursday following Romero’s first appearance.
“You had a retired police officer intentionally fire a bullet and kill him,” Ford said. “Instead of being murder, it’s called manslaughter? But again, in God we will trust.”
Irvine’s relatives wept during the hearing as prosecutors described the allegations, including claims that Romero neither called 911 nor surrendered after the shooting.
“He tailgated him closely and at times aggressively,” prosecutor Matt Sears told the court. “The defendant’s gunshot entered the back passenger window and struck the victim in his right shoulder, killing him.”
Romero left the NYPD about 25 years ago and later worked as a driver and private security guard for a Manhattan investment fund, according to police sources.
Sources said Romero attempted to turn himself in but went to the wrong stationhouse and was eventually cuffed later.
He was ordered held on $1 million bail before his lawyer, Alan Abramson, asked for a lower amount, saying, “My client was a hero police officer.”
Abramson didn’t return a request for comment Thursday afternoon.
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