Endwell Man Charged in Tesla Crash That Hurt Sheriff’s Deputy

Vestal police say a driver faces felony counts after a wrong-way crash seriously injured a Broome County sheriff's deputy.

Authorities say 34-year-old Daniel Butash of Alexander Street, Endwell, was driving a 2018 Tesla that slammed into a sheriff's department patrol vehicle on Route 17.

Butash has been charged with driving while intoxicated. He also was charged with two felonies: second-degree vehicular assault and second-degree assault.

Investigators say Butash was driving the wrong way on the expressway around 1:40 a.m. Friday when the collision occurred.

Sheriff's deputy Kristy Botsford was pinned in the 2014 Ford Explorer she had been driving. Botsford spent more than an hour in the wrecked patrol unit in sub-zero temperatures as rescue crews worked to extricate her.

The 32-year-old deputy underwent surgery Friday afternoon at Wilson Medical Center in Johnson City. She was being treated for leg and ankle injuries.

Butash was treated at the same hospital for internal bleeding and a nose injury. He was arraigned on the charges around 5 p.m. Friday and remanded to the custody of the sheriff's office corrections division.

According to Vestal police, more charges may be filed pending the results of chemical tests and further court action.

Contact WNBF News reporter Bob Joseph: bob@wnbf.com

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