W-b Owes To Two Firefighters

Albert Stravinsky 
Feb. 5, 1994 
Albert J. Stravinsky, Of Walnut Street, Luzerne, Died Saturday At Riverstreet 
Manor, Wilkes-barre.

By CHARLES H. BOGINO; Times Leader Staff Writer
 Tuesday, February 08, 1994 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 3A QUICK WORDS: PITTSTON MAN PLEADS
GUILTY IN FATAL '92 ACCIDENT 





WILKES-BARRE -- A Pittston man has pleaded guilty to causing the death of
an elderly West Pittston woman when he drunkenly drove his Oldsmobile into the
car in which she was riding. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Henry Francis Reilly of North Main Street told Luzerne County Senior Judge
Bernard J. Podcasy that he was drunk and speeding down Exeter Avenue in West
Pittston late on the afternoon of Christmas Eve 1992 when he plowed into
another Oldsmobile that was pulling out from a side street. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; According to police accounts at the time of the crash, police found two
women trapped inside the car Reilly hit. The car was resting on its side, and
the two women had to be cut from the wreck. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 One of the women, Grace Ferguson, died three hours later at Community
Medical Center in Scranton. Police said she was in her 80s and was just a few
feet from her Spring Street home when her friend's car was struck. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The driver of the car, 59-year-old Theresa Burns, was taken to CMC in
critical condition. She later recovered. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 When police arrived, they found Reilly sitting on the steps of a house near
the accident scene. Police said he appeared drunk and failed a field sobriety
test. He was taken to Wilkes-Barre General Hospital for a blood test about 45
minutes after the accident. His blood-alcohol level was 0.12, over the legal
limit of 0.10. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Witnesses at the scene told police that Reilly had said Burns' car had
pulled out of Spring Street right in front of his. He told police he had been
traveling 25 mph. But police measured 96 feet of skid marks, indicating his
speed was much greater. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Reilly also told police that he drank four bottles of beer within two hours
of the accident. Police found six empty 7-ounce bottles of Rolling Rock beer
hidden in the bushes near the steps where Reilly had been siting after the
wreck. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Reilly, 44, faces up to seven years in prison when he is sentenced Feb. 28.

Pittston Man Pleads Guilty In Fatal '92 Accident 
Henry Francis Reilly Admits He Was Drunk And Speeding. Grace Ferguson Of West 
Pittston Died 3 Hours After The Christmas Eve Crash

Pittston Man Pleads Guilty In Fatal '92 Accident Henry Francis Reilly Admits He Was Drunk And Speeding. Grace Ferguson Of West Pittston Died 3 Hours After The Christmas Eve Crash