On Tuesday, Aug. 21, Nassau County Supreme Court handed down its sentence in the case of Sayed Khaled El-Waraky, the American University student who ran down four young local men at the Soundview Restaurant last summer.

On June 18, 2006, Mr. El-Waraky was ejected from the Soundview Tiki Bar following rowdy and abrasive behavior. Det. Sgt. Tom Fitzpatrick of the Glen Cove Police Department reported that Mr. El-Waraky, who was 19 at the time, had been causing trouble with the staff and patrons until Sean Basdavanos, a bouncer at the club, escorted him from the bar at 2:45 a.m. The detective added that a group of approximately 30 people watched and heard as El-Waraky reportedly muttered, "I'll kill you all" as he headed for his 2005 Jaguar. He started the car and headed for the exit, when, according to Det. Sgt. Richard Laursen of the Nassau Homicide Squad, "He deliberately made a U-turn, put his car into a high rate of speed and drove it directly into the crowd" gathered outside the Soundview.

At high speed, El-Waraky struck four young men, critically injuring two, and injuring two others. The victims, Sean Basdavanos, Salvatore Martinez and Matthew Hurwitz of Glen Cove, and Matthew Granger of Water Mill, are in their early 20s and are all well-known and respected in the community.

Mr. El-Waraky had initially been indicted by a grand jury on four counts of assault in the first degree (including two counts citing a "depraved indifference to human life"), a Class B felony; two counts of assault in the second degree, a Class D felony; two counts of assault in the third degree, a Class A misdemeanor; reckless endangerment in the first degree, a Class D felony; and driving while intoxicated, an unclassified misdemeanor. However, at trial, the jury was hung on the top counts, finding the defendant guilty solely on the minor ones.

At the sentencing, Mr. El-Waraky received the maximum sentence of one and one-third to four years in prison for driving under the influence and leaving the scene of an accident, terms to run concurrently. Mr. El-Waraky has been incarcerated awaiting trial for one year since his arrest, which stands as time served.

Nassau County State Supreme Court Judge Joseph Calabrese suggested that the defendant be given the full sentence of four years, without parole. According to attorney Jeffrey Lisabeth, who is representing Sean Basdavanos in a civil suit, the judge gave his opinion in no uncertain terms, and added that the judge's "strongly worded statement should hold great sway" with the department of probation. "It appeared to me that Judge Calabrese used tremendous restraint in his wording and he seemed to be as nauseated by the [defendant] as everyone else in the room," said Mr. Lisabeth.

While he was not present at the criminal trial, Mr. Lisabeth remarked that, from facts made known at the trial, he believed Mr. El-Waraky's actions to be "incomprehensible to any right-thinking human being. In fact," he added, "he seemed to have the mindset of a suicide bomber."

Asked if he believed there would be a retrial on the top counts, Mr. Lisabeth said, "No one can handicap the judicial system; however, I can't wait to hear from the district attorney's office what they intend to do, how they intend to do it and what the explanation is for what they have done." Asked when he thought a decision would be made, the attorney replied, "They should have decided a month ago."

Speaking with this reporter following the sentencing, Bill Basdavanos, father of Sean, said he did not feel the "punishment suited the crime," but added he was "pleased that the judge recommended the full sentence without parole." Mr. Basdavanos added that he did not understand the trial jury's inability to find the defendant guilty of "intent" to commit the crime. "Intent was there. He made a threat to kill them all, and he followed through on his threat," he said.

Mr. Basdavanos continued, "We are of course thankful all the boys are alive, but they will carry the scars of the event with them for the rest of their lives, both physically and psychologically, while the man who committed the crime will be free in four years to just go on with his life as if nothing happened. Hopefully, Matt Granger will fully recover from the brain trauma he received, but that sort of injury is always questionable.

"I think the jury missed the boat on this," said Mr. Basdavanos. "Maybe at the trial the boys looked healthier than they actually were, but if the jury fully understood what these young men, and their families, went through, they would have come to a different decision."

As the young men continue to heal, the defendant remains in custody, and the families involved in the tragic event continue to wait.