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NY DAILY NEWS 
Stein for News Faye McCormack lost her son Fred (below) to an accused drunken driver.
Putting drunken drivers behind bars is Fay McCormack's business. Jailing the man who ran down her son last year is personal. The veteran Georgia prosecutor is pressing for prosecution instead of a plea bargain in the Oct. 11, 2008, death of her son, Fred - struck by a car and killed in East New York, Brooklyn. The lawyer for driver Michael Ortiz says an overzealous McCormack took this case too personally, pushing Brooklyn prosecutors to charge his Queens client despite a weak case. Ortiz, of Howard Beach, stayed at the accident scene and called 911. He agreed to take a Breathalyzer test and registered .04 - about half the legal limit, defense lawyer Eric Franz said. Yet the 22-year-old defendant was charged with vehicular manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide and driving while under the influence. Fay McCormack, who spent 18 years as a prosecutor in Fulton County, Ga., is unmoved by Franz's allegation. "In Georgia, if you kill somebody by driving drunk, you are going to jail for some time," she said. "I hope the same things happens in Brooklyn. I hope there is no plea deal." Fred McCormack, 28, was struck by Ortiz's Honda at Conduit and Pitkin Aves., near his Brooklyn home. Ortiz was speeding - traveling 49 mph in a 40 mph zone - and admitted downing two bourbons before the accident, court papers say. His dad is Officer Luis Ortiz, a 10-year NYPD veteran. He's due in court Nov. 23. McCormack is a traffic safety coordinator, training and advising Georgia law enforcement about prosecuting DWI cases. She said her attention to her son's case, including a recent meeting with Brooklyn prosecutors, demonstrates that her city counterparts shared her concerns. "When you drive while drunk, your car is a weapon, just like a gun is a weapon," said McCormack. "That's how the prosecutors in Brooklyn feel, too." At the time of his death, Fred McCormack was working as a contracting consultant with the Education Department and had applied to law school. The gifted violinist played in the orchestra while at Emory University and was looking to start his own quartet. "He was an amazing musician," Fay McCormack said.
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