Driver charged in deadly crash

CAMDEN, N.J. -- The driver of a car that plowed through a McDonald's restaurant, killing three workers, was arrested Wednesday and charged with three counts of aggravated manslaughter charges.

Camden County Prosecutor Lee A. Solomon said the May 15 crash in the Philadelphia suburb of Mount Ephraim was a suicide attempt, but he did not specify why the man might have wanted to take his own life. The car was traveling at least 95 mph when it crashed through the restaurant's glass front window before dawn, Solomon said.

Frank R. Nastasi, 52, pleaded innocent. He was taken into custody at Kennedy Hospital in Cherry Hill where he was being treated for cracked ribs and other injuries.

Nastasi told detectives he hoped a passing car would strike and kill him as he drove through the intersection and that he chose to drive into the 24-hour restaurant because his father ate breakfast there every morning, according to court documents.

Defense attorney Charles Nugent Jr. called the crash a "tragic accident" and questioned whether Nastasi's statements to investigators were voluntary.

"He mentally wasn't well. He's delusional," Nugent said, adding that Nastasi was questioned in a hospital bed without a lawyer present.

Bail was set at $375,000, though a judge said Nastasi could be returned to the psychiatric ward at Kennedy Hospital if the facility was found to be secure enough.