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Man paralyzed in 2013 Arborway crash dies
By adamg on Mon, 02/20/2017 - 9:51am
The family of Kevin Cellucci posted yesterday that he had died, 3 1/2 years after a speeding West Roxbury teenager rolled his SUV across the Arborway and plowed into Cellucci's pickup as he drove to a job.
The driver, Nikolas Papadopoulos, got a year in jail for causing the crash, which also left one of his passengers permanently paralyzed.
Cellucci leaves his wife Tina and his three sons, Stephen, Declan and Paul.
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Comments
Tragedy
A truly horrible situation all around. God Rest His Soul.
Can a vehicular homicide charge now apply?
If Mr. Celluci died as a result of the collision does that mean there is a legal connection?
If there isn't a legal connection to Mr. Celluci's death and the
collision, there should be. That's a horrific situation all around, and just a year in the slammer simply isn't enough for the teen who caused the collision and Mr. Celluci's death.
Hey, you can connect with the
Hey, you can connect with the perp on linkedin! What a surprise...he's passionate about finance!
What are you trying to say
Because he made a horrible decision as a teen he should trying and become a contributing member of society.
Maybe we should just execute that 14 yo from Dot arrested yesterday, well because he'll probably end up with murder charges soon or later.
Phew! Only a year.
Good thing Mr. Papadopoulos wasn't scarred for life from being incarcerated for an extended time for what was a simple mistake.
/s
How do you know?
He hasn't been scarred for life?
I'm thankful that by the time
I'm thankful that by the time my kid is old enough to drive, his car will drive itself, and I won't have to worry so much about him making mistakes like this.
Speeding and driving
Speeding and driving recklessly are a choice, not a mistake...
Of course...
but the choice can lead to a mistake. And we all make them.
Just absolutely heartbreaking
My heart goes out to everything this family has suffered and will continue to suffer for years to come.
Lest we forget...
...the driver's actions also seriously injured his passenger, then just 14 years old. I believe he was permanently paralyzed too.
Buy hey, Mr. Papadopoulos will be AOK. He'll probably be out of jail shortly, if he isn't already. And if all goes well, he'll have his license back real soon. Justice!
Depressing
If these people were killed by a foreigner in the name of their god it would be used as justification for all sorts of changes and endlessly discussed.
But few care when people are killed and maimed at hands of someone driving recklessly.
What is depressing is
that, as of my posting, 15 people like your comment.
Good. God. You assume much. And you know what they say about those who make assumptions...
Posted in error.
n/t
And still...
...and STILL no speed limit signs or updates to the community on safety improvements for the Arborway.
New signs
I'm not sure about the stretch between Murray Circle and Forest Hills because I haven't traveled that way. But there are two new speed limits signs outbound on the Jamaicaway and the Arborway between Perkins and Murray. I'm very happy that the DCR has done this. They have also put new pedestrian crossing signs at all the entrances and exits of Murray Circle where there are crosswalks. Very very happy that they have done this.
I believe the Perkins/Parkman plan has gone to the Boston Conservation Commission for review and there is money in the budget to do that. The Arborway plan is funded to complete the study and plans but no money has been budgeted for actual implementation. The State cut the DCR budget this year for capital projects (statewide) from $165 million to $115. Please let your state reps know that you are in favor of increased budgets for the DCR. The agency has also lost a good portion of their workforce through early retirement incentives so there is definitely a shortage of employees.
Edit: Also write to the DCR Commissioner and to Governor Baker asking for updates. The JP Neighborhood Council recently sent a letter, which is on their website, I think. (And I don't work for the State or DCR.)
Safety improvements
As JPNC (and others) have pointed out, DCR is a year overdue on promised updates to the presumably ongoing South Street-to-Jamaica Pond safety improvements initiative, and I too encourage those interested to call for State action. Crosswalk signage at Murray Circle is very welcome - but speed was a huge factor in this particular tragedy and the Arborway along the Arboretum is far too often driven more like a speedway than a parkway, with no speed limit guidance and little enforcement.
Truly "fixing" the safety issues for vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists is a large undertaking in need of ongoing community input and a budget commitment - but a few simple speed limit signs could help prevent the next incident, save a few saplings trying to get established, and preserve the barrier fence along the Upper Arborway carriage road (where the posted limit for this neighborhood street is inexplicably 30mph).
Speed limit signs won't fix
Speed limit signs won't fix the safety problems of a dangerous road.
No they won't.
That's why it is important to continue the Arborway planning with traffic-calming design, bike lanes, and better pedestrian access. There have been at least four public meetings about the new plans for the Arborway, and designs and redesigns with public comments. All the presentations and comments are on the DCR website. The neighborhood is awaiting the next meeting to continue the process and has been advocating for this for more than six months. In the meantime, the new signs are better than what was there before, i.e. nothing.
My condolences
to the Cellucci family. I can't imagine the heartbreak they've had to endure these past few years. May they find some peace now. I feel bad for all families involved in this. I understand the anger at the driver who caused this but at the same time, I feel bad for him too. I'm sure he did not set out that day to ruin so many lives and, for the rest of his life, he has to live with the results of his decision to speed. With my own child on the cusp of getting her license, I can only hope that this accident will serve as a reminder that this kind of tragic situation can happen to anyone and the decisions we make while driving can possibly ruin lives.
Crash, Not Accident
This is was not an accident - calling it so implies no one was at fault. Mr. Papadopoulous drove recklessly at a high speed on a winding road knowing full well he could seriously injure or even kill someone if he lost control, which he did. We need to stop making excuses for people that drive like this. It's not an accident, it's foreseeable. The laws of the Commonwealth on reckless driving are a joke which is why he only served one year for destroying Mr. Cellucci's life. I hope his family can find some peace now. Bless them.
Well.
Yes, he drove recklessly and caused, wait for it, what we call a car accident which involved his car crashing into another vehicle. That is why our insurance companies call them "accidents" for coverage purposes.
I do not believe Mr. Papadopoulous jumped in his SUV that day and said "I'm going to cause an accident". He was a teenager and many teenagers do, at some points during their lives, dumb and/or reckless things. Most of the time they do not hurt and/or kill someone. And most people, in general, do not give their recklessness driving that much of a thought (unfortunately). He was tried and went to jail (even though one may argue for not enough time) so I don't think anyone is making excuses!
In regards to being "foreseeable", well, I am sure Mr. Papadopoulous did not "foresee" his crashing into another vehicle. As I said, he probably did not give his reckless driving that much thought cause he probably though nothing bad would happen.
Thoughts to the family during this difficult time.
So what will it take?
So what will it take to get people, of all ages, to give some thought to the fact that propelling a 4000 pound hunk of metal machinery at speeds faster than they can control will likely result in their crashing and in doing so, destroying lives? Honest question, and I don't know the answer. You'd think countless accidents/crashes per day would raise awareness, but this doesn't seem to be the case.
Remind me where you live
Maybe, when its summer and the fire danger is up, I'll go play with matches near your house.
I'm sure you'll find the resulting "accident" forgivable.
NB: insurers don't call them accidents anymore. They call them COLLISIONS because those are preventable and statistically foreseeable given certain behaviors.
Perhaps you should disclose your connection to the murdering driver? Just to clear the air here?
No, they call them crashes,
No, they call them crashes, because they don't understand how language works.
Where along the route was BPL's Francis X. Moloney killed?
Where along the route was Boston Public Library's Francis X. Moloney and his wife killed?...