What Happened
A 31-year-old Medford woman was arrested Saturday night after allegedly driving while intoxicated and crashing her vehicle into a wooded area on Horseblock Road in Brookhaven — with her two toddler sons still inside the car. According to News 12 Long Island, Suffolk County Police identified the driver as Jesher Ribera-Barreto.
Suffolk police said Ribera-Barreto was traveling southbound on Horseblock Road near its intersection with Montauk Highway in Brookhaven at approximately 11:30 p.m. when she lost control of her vehicle. The car deviated from the roadway and crashed into the woods. Her two sons — one just 1 year old, the other 4 years old — were passengers in the vehicle at the time of the crash.
As News 12 Long Island reported, Ribera-Barreto and both children were transported to a local hospital for evaluation following the collision. Ribera-Barreto and the 1-year-old were treated for minor injuries. The 4-year-old was found to be unharmed. Both children were later released from the hospital into the care of their father.
Police subsequently charged Ribera-Barreto with aggravated driving while intoxicated under Leandra’s Law — an automatic felony charge triggered by the presence of child passengers under 15. She additionally faces a charge of driving while intoxicated and two counts of endangering the welfare of a child, according to News 12 Long Island.
Location & Road Context
Horseblock Road is a significant north-south arterial in the Town of Brookhaven, carrying heavy local traffic through the Medford area. The segment near Montauk Highway — a major east-west commercial and commuter corridor — is a busy intersection point where residential and through traffic regularly converge, particularly on weekend evenings. The 11:30 p.m. crash time falls within a window when impaired-driving incidents spike on Long Island.
The Medford area has seen a string of serious road accidents in recent months, including a serious two-vehicle crash at a busy Medford intersection in April 2026 and a fatal motorcycle crash involving Medford resident Cyle Ashby in March 2026.
Investigation & Legal Proceedings
Suffolk County Police filed four charges against Ribera-Barreto following the Saturday night crash: felony aggravated driving while intoxicated under Leandra’s Law, misdemeanor driving while intoxicated, and two counts of endangering the welfare of a child. The felony Leandra’s Law charge is automatic under New York State law whenever a motorist is charged with DWI and a child under 15 is present in the vehicle — no additional aggravating factor beyond the child’s presence is required to trigger the felony classification.
The case is expected to proceed through Suffolk County criminal court. Long Island Traffic will update this report with arraignment outcomes, any plea proceedings, and sentencing as those details become part of the public record.
What This DWI Charge Means
New York’s Vehicle and Traffic Law §1192 establishes three tiers of alcohol-impaired driving offenses. A DWAI (driving while ability impaired) applies when a driver’s BAC falls between 0.05 and 0.07 and is a traffic infraction, not a crime. A standard DWI charge — the one Ribera-Barreto faces in addition to the felony count — applies at a BAC of 0.08 or above and is a misdemeanor on a first offense, carrying fines of $500–$1,000, a minimum six-month license revocation, and up to one year in jail. Aggravated DWI, a separate charge under §1192.2-a, applies when BAC reaches 0.18 or higher and carries stiffer fines and longer license revocation periods. Drivers who refuse a chemical test face an automatic one-year license revocation and a $500 civil penalty under New York’s implied consent law — and the refusal itself can be used against them in court.
Leandra’s Law — formally enacted in 2009 — elevates any DWI charge to a class E felony when a child under 15 is in the vehicle, regardless of which §1192 tier applies. A felony conviction on a first offense can mean up to four years in state prison, a mandatory ignition interlock device on any vehicle the defendant owns or operates, and a permanent criminal record. Ribera-Barreto faces both the underlying DWI charge and the felony Leandra’s Law count, meaning her case will be handled at the felony level from the outset.
Case Status & Updates
It is important to note that the charges filed against Jesher Ribera-Barreto are accusations. She is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law. The case will be arraigned in Suffolk County District Court and is expected to proceed through the Long Island criminal court system in the months ahead.
Long Island Traffic monitors DWI cases from arrest through final disposition. This report will be updated as arraignment results, any plea agreements, and sentencing details become available in the public record. Readers with information about this incident can also contact us directly.