Hit-And-Run

Another Florida pedestrian has died in an early morning hit-and-run accident. A 30-year-old man was on foot on the northbound lanes of Seminole Boulevard in Largo, just south of 119th Avenue N, when he was hit by a northbound vehicle around 2 a.m. on Sunday, February 13. He was taken to Bayfront Medical Center where he was pronounced dead. Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) investigators say the driver of the unknown vehicle involved did not stop and TampaBay.com reports the FHP is asking the public, or any witnesses, to contact FHP Cpl. Jim Atwood at 727-570-5010, ext. 309 if they have any information as to what led up to the fatal collision.

Our condolences go out to the friends and family of this man.

With nearly 700,000 hit-and-run reports each year in the nation, our state ranks third in the number of Florida hit-and-run accidents. The Governors Highway Safety Association has just released figures that show in 2009 nationwide there were 4,092 pedestrian fatalities, an increase of 0.4 percent at a time when traffic fatalities are declining.

To combat the trend, the Florida pedestrian accident lawyers at the Farah & Farah law firm have joined Hit-and-Run Reward, a national program financed exclusively by personal injury attorneys who believe if you report a hit-and-run driver you will keep a dangerous driver off the road and you could receive a financial reward of $1,000 for anyone you turn in who is later convicted of the hit-and-run. Visit our website for more information on Hit-and-Run Reward. The number to report a hit-and-run driver is 1-800-644-8678.

A Tampa hit-and-run driver made a very bad decision on November 21, 2009 that will keep him in prison for the next 15 years. The driver said he was searching for a cigarette on the floor of his vehicle when he struck a University of Tampa student and another young woman and then left the scene of the accident. WTSP-Television reports the young man was declared brain dead and taken off life support. On Wednesday, February 9, the man received the sentence to be followed by 15 years probation.

Florida law states that a driver must remain at the scene of a crash to provide aid and information. A failure to do so is a first degree felony punishable by up to 30 years in prison.

With nearly 700,000 hit-and-run reports each year in the nation, Florida ranks third in the nation in the number of hit-and-run accidents. In 2009, 482 pedestrians were killed in the state, a slight decline from the previous year.

Farah & Farah’s Florida pedestrian accident attorneys also advise that you have an obligation to move your damaged vehicle if it is blocking traffic, which does not constitute a criminal offense.

Because hit-and-run accidents are such a problem in Florida, Farah & Farah has decided to join Hit-and-Run Reward, a national program financed exclusively by American personal injury attorneys. Report a hit-and-run driver and you will keep a dangerous driver off the road and you can also receive a financial reward of $1,000 for anyone you turn in who is later convicted of the hit-and-run. This program is offered in addition to the Crime Stoppers reward program, so doing the right thing could yield you $2,000. The number for Hit-and-Run Reward is 1-800-644-8678.

There has been a recent rash of traffic-related deaths in the Ocala area. A pedestrian struck by a hit-and-run driver died on Wednesday, January 26 from injuries he sustained in a hit-and-run accident on Monday, January 24 reports Ocala.com.

According to Ocala police, the 42-year-old man was critically injured by a vehicle Monday night in the 1400 block of East State Road 40 and was airlifted to Shands in Gainesville. A woman reportedly came to police about an hour after the incident to report she thought she might have hit something but didn’t know what it was. The man was found lying in the street. The woman has not been charged even though the incident is classified as a hit-and-run.

This is the latest in a string of traffic accident-related deaths in Marion County, including another hit-and-run earlier in January, where the driver has not been apprehended, and three traffic-related deaths within one day this week, including a bicycle fatality, where the offender has not been found. So far, six people have died in traffic related crashes in Marion County compared to nine deaths during this same time last year. In 2010, 79 people died in traffic-related crashes in the county.

Florida Hit-and-Run Accidents
With nearly 700,000 hit-and-run reports each year in the nation, Florida ranks third in the nation in the number of hit-and-run incidents.

Because this is such a problem in our state, the Florida car crash attorneys at the Farah & Farah law firm is a member of Hit-and-Run Reward, a national program financed exclusively by American personal injury attorneys who believe if you report a hit-and-run driver you will not only feel good by keeping a dangerous driver off the road, but you could receive a financial reward of $1,000 for anyone you turn in who is later convicted of the hit-and-run. This program is offered in addition to the Crime Stoppers reward program, so doing the right thing could yield you $2,000. The number for Hit-and-Run Reward is 1-800-644-8678.

It is the second worst thing you can do after hitting someone with your vehicle. St. Augustine police have charged Derek Lee Mrasak, 19, with the hit-and-run death of Brian Robert Stevenot who died on Rambla Street and U.S. 1 in St. Augustine early Saturday, October 16, according to The Florida Times-Union.

Mrasak is facing vehicular homicide charges as well as tampering with evidence. It was a tipster who led them to Mrasak. The tipster told police that Mrasak fled to a friend’s house to wash the truck of blood and hair, dismantle and sell it as part of a cover-up. Mrasak reportedly told a group of friends that he had been drinking when someone stepped in front of his vehicle. He bonded out of jail on $35,000 bail Monday, October 18.

The Florida Highway Patrol reports there were 502 pedestrian fatalities in the state in 2008. Unfortunately, Jacksonville is third in the state in hit-and-run accidents despite the fact that it is the seventh in population

Liability Issues
Often a driver who flees the scene has been drinking or is driving with an expired license or no license at all. Because Mrasak failed to render aid, he could be facing 30 years in prison if convicted.

Farah & Farah extend its condolences to the family of Mr. Stevenot.

Family members would be well-advised to contact a Florida car accident attorney to make sure that evidence is preserved and a thorough investigation is conducted in this collision. Farah & Farah has its doors open at anytime to consult on a Florida auto accident case that results in injury or death.

Three bicyclists were hospitalized after they were injured by a hit-and-run driver on U.S. 1 in St. Augustine Monday afternoon, according to an article in The Florida Times-Union. Two cyclists were taken to Shands in Jacksonville and one was transported to Flagler Hospital in St. Augustine. The driver who hit the cyclists has been identified as Michael Nally, 42, who was behind the wheel of a PT Cruiser heading northbound on Ponce De Leon Boulevard when he swerved into the three cyclists just before 1 p.m., hit them, but then kept driving. Fortunately, a Good Samaritan followed Nally and then called police and told them he pulled into a bar on North Ponce De Leon. The witness also told police that he saw a beer can thrown from the car. Police tracked down Nally to Arnold’s Bar where he was arrested and charged with three counts of leaving the scene of an accident with bodily injury.

As we’ve said here before, leaving the scene of an accident where there is an injury or possible death is the worst thing you can possibly do. The first degree felony criminal charge will be added that can bring 30 years in state prison.

Despite being seventh in population, Jacksonville is third in the state in the number of hit-and runs.

The state reports there were 349 hit –and-run driving prosecutions in 2006 in our area. By 2007 and 2008 there were 2,000. That is such a sad statement about how we fail to care.

DUI charges are possible pending the result of a blood test.

Fortunately, the bicyclists were wearing helmets and those taken to Shands had the most serious injuries. We now know the identities of the three. They all worked for the St. Johns County technology department and were out for a lunchtime ride.

They are identified as Robert Jolley and Daniel Phillips who went to Shands and were in fair condition. Derick Tillman went to Flagler Hospital as a precaution. How many more accidents of this kind do we need before we dedicate bike paths for riders? After all, the roads are there to be shared by everyone, not just those with the biggest vehicle.

If you have been hit by a drunk driver or a hit-and-run accident, a dedicated and experienced Florida hit and run accident attorney can help you get the resources you need to begin the road to recovery.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is releasing new data that shows that keeping the drinking age laws at 21 prevented an estimated 4,441 drunk driving deaths over the last five years.

NHTSA was responding to a national movement among colleges to turn back the drinking age to 18. After all, the argument goes, we sent 18-year-olds to die in Iraq, why not allow them to drink and take away the stigma of doing something “illegal”?

Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) headed a symposium on the issue. MADD says that “Turning our back on these laws would be a deadly mistake. Minimum drinking age laws are among the most effective measures ever used to reduce drunken driving deaths among America’s young people.”

NHTSA’s data reports that motorcycle helmet use has risen in recent years and that using those helmets is saving lives – from 1,173 in 2003 to 1,784 in 2007. Remember though that there has been a dramatic increase in motorcycle use over those years. Still more than 7,000 lives are estimated to have been spared because of the use of helmets on motorcycles.

Adding more safety features on the roads has also saved lives.

In 2007, front air bags saved 2,788 passengers ages 13 and older. Child safety seats saved 358 lives of children age 4 and under. Seat belts saved more than 15,000 lives, but unfortunately not everyone wears seat belts.

Nationally, even more lives could have been saved – an estimated 5,000 – if everyone had been belted up. #

With more than 36,000 teen drivers involved in car crashes in Florida last year –and a teen killed every 6.5 minutes nationwide, the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles has created an interactive web site to drive home the message of safety on the road.

With great graphics, bold music, and production techniques, TakeTheWheel.net was created by teens for teens. It’s a very powerful and effective way to communicate the truth about the responsibility of taking the wheel, including the facts:

• According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) more than two-thirds of teen passengers and drivers who die in nighttime car crashes are not wearing their seat belts.
• Teens are involved in three times as many fatal crashes as all other drivers.
• Distractions such as loud music, texting, cell phone use, driving tired combined with inexperience and speed and drug use all aggravate the problem.
• In addition to the 36,000 involved in teen crashes last year, more than 479 people were killed in auto accidents where a teenager was behind the wheel.
• Auto accidents remain the number one cause of death for teenagers.

In the teen videos- Alexa tell story of her cousin Mandy, now in a vegetative state, after an accident in December of 2004. She was in a car that was t-boned by another car driven by a student driver.

Alexa says, “She starts to cry and she has feelings she needs to get out but she can’t because of the way she is. Being in an accident and almost dying changes everybody life not just around them, but the whole school. People may not realize it but people have a lot of value. People take their life for granted.”

Dustin watched his 19-year-old cousin, Frankie die after his car flipped 15 times. Frankie had been drinking and driving. His much larger cousin stopped him when depressed and drunk, Dustin tried to get behind the wheel. ” I broke down and cried and my parents came and picked me upl. I will not let anybody get in the car if they’re drunk,” he says.

Megan was in a car that hit the back of a truck, then split into a “V”. Her boyfriend died, as did the driver of the other vehicle. Megan begins crying on camera when she tells her story. “I have friends who street race and they still do it, and I don’t undertand why. If someone is in the car with me I make them put their seatbelt on. I’m really serious about it. You’re not going to die while I’m driving.”

Kudos on talking to teens in a language that matters. I hope every young driver in Florida takes the time to listen to the experiences of people who have suffered from the loss of a loved one. I can happen to you. It happened to them.

The web site is here TakeTheWheel.net.

It was a tragic end to a Jacksonville police officer’s life.

50-year-old Officer Michael Hartsfield died July 30, when the car her was a passenger in crashed off Fort Caroline Road. It was driven by his friend, 45- year-old Vicki Mullins.

She reportedly lost control of the car on a curve during the evening hours. No other cars were involved. The car hit a ditch and then bounced off the culvert before landing on its roof.   The car was a convertible Ford Mustang. Officer Hartsfield died at the hospital after he was cut out of the vehicle.   Mullins was hurt also.

Now police say her blood alcohol level was twice the legal limit and they believe speed may have been a factor. She’s been charged with DUI manslaughter and is in jail tonight on $750,000 bond.

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A new traffic control technique got underway this week in Central Florida that is aimed at catching those among us who feel compelled to run red lights.

You know the people who cross in your path and if they were two seconds later would have T-boned your car.

Seven of the most dangerous intersections in Orlando will have the cameras and lasers placed on poles about 12 feet high. They will take images as the vehicle approaches an intersection, taking a still photo and video of violators.  

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A four-vehicle wreck south of Fernandina Beach, Florida killed two and injured four others Wednesday. Police say that the wreck may have been intentional. 

Just after 1:30 a pickup truck traveling north on state Road 200 crossed the median then turned south in the northbound lanes.

It struck one car head-on, then two others before it overturned and caught on fire.

The Florida Highway Patrol says it looks like the driver had time to think about what he was doing then accelerated into oncoming traffic.

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