Man involved in alleged wrong-way crash with Yonkers mayoral aide sues him, his mother

A lawsuit has been filed against Yonkers mayoral aide Akeem Jamal over an alleged drunk driving, wrong-way crash in September.
The victim of the crash, 53-year-old Lawrence Patton, of Wappingers Falls, is suing Jamal for what he describes as dangerous driving, resulting in serious, permanent injuries.
The 7-page lawsuit submitted to Westchester Supreme Court, says Jamal "failed to obey the rules of the road" and drove "at a dangerous and excessive rate of speed."
According to Yonkers police, back on Sept. 15, Jamal was driving in the wrong lane of traffic on Central Avenue for over a mile before he crashed into Patton. Patton claims he sustained permanent injuries that will require continued medical care.
In explaining the severity, he claims he is "unable to perform his usual and customary daily activities for a longer period of time." Patton is suing Jamal and his mother, who owns the vehicle he was driving.
On Thursday, Jamal was charged with reckless endangerment, assault, driving while intoxicated, reckless driving and driving in the wrong lane of traffic.
According to a Yonkers spokesperson, the case will not affect his employment as the city's deputy communications director.