Exclusive | Dogs are immediate family, NY judge rules in unprecedented decision over dachshund run over by out-of-control driver

What was once was man’s best friend is now man’s closest family — in New York, at least.Dogs are so much more than just possessions, a Brooklyn judge just ruled, in allowing the heartbroken family of an adorable, Tuxedo-wearing dachschund named Duke to sue for emotional distress after the tiny pup was cruelly mowed down by a driver.Nan DeBlase, who was walking her son Trevor DeBlase’s pooch on July 4, 2023, is entitled to damages because she was tormented by witnessing the helpless 4-year-old get crushed, Supreme Court Judge Aaron Maslow said.“It is reasonable for a jury to conclude that witnessing Duke being crushed led to emotional distress that goes beyond that which is generally felt by the loss of mere property,” Maslow wrote in his bombshell decision Tuesday.“This Court fails to see why a beloved companion pet could not be considered ‘immediate family’ in the context of the zone of danger doctrine under the fact pattern presented by Plaintiffs.”Nearly exactly two years ago, Nan was walking with Duke in Mill Basin when an out-of-control driver blew through a stop sign, slamming into the leashed wiener dog as Nan jumped out of harm’s way. “It was very traumatic, extremely,” Nan, 66, told The Post Wednesday.“I mean, I was hysterical when it happened.”Duke’s untimely death — just a few months after he walked down the aisle at Trevor’s wedding, dressed in a sharp tux — was all captured on video and shows how Nan even patiently waited for an earlier car to drive through before crossing the street.“A few hours ago a man blew a stop sign, almost hit my mother and hit my poor sweet Duke and killed him,” Deblase wrote on his Instagram page on July 4, 2023. “I can’t even believe I am typing these words right now,” the post reads.

“I loved this dog more than life itself and things will never be the same without him.”The DeBlases sued a month later, challenging an “antiquated” law which only allowed Trevor to sue...