Drunk Mom Ask Girls to "Raise Your Hands If You Think We'll Crash"

NEW YORK - Carmen Huertas, 31, faces up to 15 years in prison after being charged with manslaughter, vehicular manslaughter, driving under the influence of alcohol, and assault.

Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau said "I can't think of a more serious crime," as he announced the indictment. Eleven year old Leandra Rosado was killed in the car crash on October 11.

The events leading up to the girl's death was extremely disturbing. Witnesses said Huertas drank cognac at a birthday party in Chelsea before cramming eight children into her station wagon at 12:30 a.m. They were on the way to her Bronx home to continue a slumber party. Her own daughter was in the car, along with her 14-month old son.

Just before speeding off, the toddler's father, Eduardo Henriquez, stopped her. Huertas dismissed his concerns, and Henriquez was able to snatch his boy from the car. He did not make any efforts to remove any of the other endangered children.

Right before the 12:40 a.m. crash, Heurtas played a guessing game with the terrified girls in the car. She demanded they raise their hands if they thought they'd make it to her home without crashing, or if they thought they were going to crash.

She was driving 68 mph in a 50 mph zone. Three girls in the very back were ejected onto the shoulder of the highway. When emergency workers arrived, Leandra was in cardiac arrest and pronounced dead of head and torso injuries at St. Luke's Hospital.

One of the girls in the crash, Yiselle Rosario, 11, remains hospitalized in serious but stable condition.

Huertas is still hospitalized with a broken shoulder, and says she wants to die. She is not expected to be arraigned until mid-November.

Huertas had a blood alcohol level of .132, way above the .08 legal limit.