STONY POINT, N.Y. – A man accused of allowing his wife to drive off a 300-foot cliff with their daughters in the family minivan was indicted Thursday on charges of reckless endangerment, promoting a suicide and endangering children.
Victor Han, of New York City, had pleaded not guilty to the same charges after his arrest in June. He did not enter a plea Thursday.
Authorities said Hejin Han, 35, drove the family's Honda Odyssey off Bear Mountain, about 40 miles north of the city, just after her husband stepped outside the minivan on June 14. She was killed, but the children, 5 and 3, survived without major injury.
At the time, authorities alleged that Victor Han, an architect, drove the family to a scenic overlook, knowing his wife planned to kill herself. He was accused of getting out of the van and walking away while his wife got behind the wheel and drove over the edge.
In a deposition, Han acknowledged that he worried his wife was suicidal. But he said he got out of the van to take pictures and when he saw the vehicle moving he tried to stop it. He said that he called 911, ran down the embankment and rescued their daughters but that he could not revive his wife.
Of the charges he faces, the most serious is reckless endangerment, which can carry up to seven years in prison under conviction; promoting suicide is punishable by 16 months to four years, and endangering a child carries a maximum one-year sentence.
The children are living with family friends, and a New York City family court is determining whether their father can regain custody.
Get all the stories you need-to-know from the most powerful name in news delivered first thing every morning to your inbox