Family members of fallen paramedic Lisa Sillins were joined by a large turnout from the emergency medical services community at the first court appearance of Pablo Colector, who was charged with drunken driving after hitting and killing the first responder.
Just before Christmas, Sillins had completed her shift at Ambulnz on Robinson Avenue in the City of Newburgh and was walking to her car when Colector struck her with the Ford F150 he was driving. She died from her injuries several days later.
As a mother spent the holidays burying her daughter, Colector was ticketed and walked free thanks to mandatory requirements from the state’s bail reform laws. Although he was charged with drunken driving, he has not yet been charged with her death. According to a confidential source, the Orange County District Attorney’s Office is reportedly waiting for toxicology results before upgrading the charges.
Colector made his first court appearance in the City of Newburgh yesterday morning. Sillins’ mother, family members, and peers from the EMS community all attended the court appearance. Their attendance was part of a call to action for Colector’s charges to be upgraded, but they also gathered to show support for their fallen friend. Following yesterday’s court appearance, Colector was once again allowed to walk out the doors.
Members of the EMS community plan to continue showing up for as many of Colector’s court appearances as possible.
The Emergency Medical Services Public Advocacy Council’s Hudson Valley Chapter is looking into possibly dedicating the street or intersection where Sillins was killed.
Ambulnz, New Windsor EMS, Town of Newburgh EMS, and former Cornwall Volunteer Ambulance Corp members all joined a large contingency of EMS agencies from across the region and the Tivoli Fire Department at Sillins’ funeral services at a church in Dutchess County last week (story here). Following the church services, Sillins was escorted in a procession that spanned through three counties and into New York City. During the procession, several additional EMS agencies, fire departments, and police departments from Dutchess, Putnam, and Westchester Counties lined the roads to show support. Sillins was then interred at Flushing Cemetery in Queens.
