Kings County District Attorney Charles J. Hynes today announced the indictment of NYPD Officer Andrew Kelly, on charges including Vehicular Manslaughter in the Second Degree, Operating a Motor Vehicle While Under the Influence of Alcohol and speeding.

The indictment charges that Kelly caused an automobile accident in the early hours of Sept. 27, 2009, in the vicinity of Avenue N and East 56th St., in which 32-year-old Vionique Valnord-Kassime was killed.

Kelly, had no traces of alcohol in his blood when tested some seven hours after the accident.

Kelly, 30, a seven year veteran of the NYPD, had been driving a Jeep Cherokee with friends, including a fellow off-duty cop, about 1 a.m. Sunday September  27th when Valnord was struck. The other officer in the car fled the scene and was later suspended from the force.

Kelly had pleaded not guilty at his arraignment at Brooklyn Criminal Court. He had initially refused a blood test and delays in informing prosecutors and getting a court order resulted in the seven hour delay in testing his blood.

Despite the negative results, sources said they could build a case against Kelly. At his arraignment, the prosecutor described a sergeant at the scene reporting that Kelly had  red, watery eyes and slurred speech, and that there were alcoholic beverages in the Jeep.

If convicted, Kelly faces up to seven years in prison.

(Eli Gefen – YWN / NBC New York)