Jacksonville Personal Injury Blog

We often report on adults who make the very bad decision of providing alcohol to young drinkers. It has happened again and we are hearing the specifics of the case. This time, two adult men in Palm Beach Gardens admit that they hosted an open-house party attended by teens that were provided alcohol. Following one party last August, three teenagers were killed in a Florida wrongful death car crash at a construction site. The two adult men have been arrested.

Craig Frick, 24, and David Harper, 28, turned themselves into police. Frick and Harper have been charged with allowing teens to drink on their property. WPBF is now reporting details of the arrest report.

The two adults admit to having a house party in August, 2009. Conner Graver, 16, and his friends, Christopher Briglio and Nicholas Coady, both 18, all died together when their SUV slammed into a front-end loader after they left the party. Toxicology tests prove all of the teens had been drinking. Coady, the driver, had a 0.251 blood alcohol level, more than three times the legal limit for intoxication.

A wrongful death lawsuit has been filed by Graver’s parents against the construction company for failing to have adequate lighting at the site.

Continue reading "Teens Die in Accident from Alcohol Provided by Adults" »

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Posted In: Drunk Driving Accident

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The party house mom’s trial has wrapped up in St. Augustine, Florida, according to a News4Jax article. In the first prosecution of its kind, Diane Santarelli, 52 is on trial for two counts of manslaughter in the deaths of two teens who left her home after drinking and drugs. She is also facing one count of hosting an open house party and one count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

The defense rested its case on Thursday, May 20 in regards to the Florida drunk driving crash. During the trial, two of the teens at a January 2009 party, Jessy Pitts, 18, and Taylor Brennan, 17, left the party in a 1991 Ford Thunderbird. The car was northbound on S.R. 13 when it left the road, hit a guard rail and trees and then caught fire. The two teens burned to death. Pitts was found to have a blood alcohol concentration of .18 - more than twice the legal limit. The teens were Bartram Trail High School students and members of Celebration Church.

The defense had argued that few in attendance of the January 2009 party were invited guests, but a teen testified for the prosecution that Pitts, Brennan, and others were invited for a “ManFest” January 11, by Santarelli’s daughter while Ms. Santarelli’s husband was out of town. The defense also tried to convince jurors that Pitts had been consuming alcohol before the party.

One teen on the stand testified he saw Santarelli taking shots with Pitts. Another teen testified she saw the adult woman smoking marijuana. A receipt proved that Santarelli made a run to a nearby liquor store. Santarelli’s attorney tried to show that she didn’t encourage kids to drink or do drugs and that she was concerned about how they would get home.

Santarelli‘s case is precedent setting. It is the first time a person has been charged in the state with manslaughter after hosting a house party for teens where drugs and alcohol were available.

Florida social host laws have generally applied to businesses. A bar that serves an underage drinker is breaking the law and a person can be charged with a misdemeanor of the second degree. For a misdemeanor of the second degree, state law defines the imprisonment not to exceed 60 days under Florida law 775.082.

But when the social host is serving alcohol at home, they can be liable for accidents and injuries that occur after the party where alcohol and drugs were served to minors. The liability has never before extended to a manslaughter charge. No matter how wrong this woman was to serve alcohol to minors and encourage partying at her house, we are a country of laws and the law just isn’t there. In this case, she is facing up to 31 years in prison.

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Posted In: Drunk Driving Accident

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This www.lohud.com story is out of New York where a West Nyack man, who is accused of injuring two police officers by running into a police cruiser while DUI, is also wanted on a Florida warrant charged with assaulting a Miami Beach police officer. The 30-year-old man from West Nyack is in jail on a$75,000 bond. He’s been convicted there of drunk driving three times in the last five years, most recently when he rammed the police cruiser. In January 2003, he was charged with disorderly conduct and assaulting a Miami Beach female police officer who asked him to leave after a disturbance. He was taken to jail after pushing the officer to the ground. It is still not clear why he was not prosecuted on that charge but Florida contacted New York to say it still has a warrant for his arrest on those charges.

Our condolences go out to the family of this man who seems on a path of destruction. Let’s hope that he doesn’t take anyone with him before he is locked up, at taxpayer expense, once again.

Alcohol-Related Crashes
Miami-Dade County saw 43,376 Florida auto accidents in 2008, according to the Florida Highway Patrol. 1,878 were alcohol-related and there were 271 fatalities from crashes.

DUI Laws and Liability Issues
Driving under the influence is a serious crime under Florida law, which defines anyone with a blood alcohol level over 0.08 as impaired. Under Florida law for Manslaughter and Vehicular Homicide-s. 316.193 (3), F.S.

• DUI/Manslaughter: Second Degree Felony (not more than $10,000 fine and/or 15 years imprisonment).


• DUI Manslaughter/Leaving the Scene: A driver convicted of DUI Manslaughter who knew/should have known an accident occurred; and failed to give information or render aid is guilty of a First Degree Felony (not more than $10,000 fine and/or 30 years imprisonment).


• Vehicular Homicide: Second Degree Felony (not more than $10,000 fine and/or 15 years imprisonment).


• Vehicular Homicide/Leaving the Scene: A driver convicted of vehicular homicide who left the scene of an accident is guilty of a First Degree Felony (nor more than $10,000 fine and/or 30 years imprisonment).

Continue reading "Man Charged With DUI That Injured Two Cops" »

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A Clewiston, Florida man faces 12 counts of DUI and causing bodily injury as well as possession of marijuana after the car he was driving hit a Palm Tran bus carrying 13 people. The Naples News reports that the 41-year old man was arrested on January 20, 2010 when his car ran a stop sign, slamming into the bus. The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office says the deputy at the scene reported smelling alcohol coming from the man’s car and that the man’s demeanor indicated he was under the influence. According to the deputy, a search of the man’s car uncovered a small bag of marijuana. The bus driver and passengers as well as a passenger in his car were taken to a nearby hospital with injuries.

Our prayers for a speedy recovery go out to all injured in this accident.

Alcohol-Related Accidents in Florida
The Florida Highway Patrol reports that state and local law enforcement agencies in Florida issued almost 65,000 DUI violations in 2008. While alcohol-related fatalities in 2008 were down from 2007 by 6%, 39.5% of all traffic fatalities involved alcohol, the highest it’s been in years. While no one was killed in this accident, one man is accused of driving under the influence and causing the injury of 14 people.

Continue reading "Clewiston Man DUI Hits Bus" »

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Posted In: Auto Accidents , Bus Accident , Drunk Driving Accident , Personal Injury

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A St. Johns Circuit Judge has refused to dismiss manslaughter charges against a 51-year-old woman accused of letting teens drink in her house and doing nothing to stop it.

The Judge said that the woman’s actions “set in motion a chain of events” that ended with the January 11 deaths of an 18-year-old and a 17-year-old.

The two St. Johns County teens were leaving a party at the woman’s home. Friends say they were too drunk to get behind the wheel of a 1991 Ford Thunderbird. The car veered off State Road 13 near Orangedale and hit some trees, bursting into flames. Both teens died. The driver’s blood alcohol level was 0.18, more than twice the legal limit.

The woman’s attorney says that allowing someone to leave your home intoxicated does not merit a manslaughter charge and her defense will be that the kids arrived at her house already intoxicated.

But prosecutors say the woman allowed, provided, or encouraged minors to drink alcohol at the house party and smoke marijuana. And they say this was not the first party hosted by this particular woman, according to prosecutors. She is alleged to have hosted parties in September, two in December 2008, as well as the one in January.

Continue reading "Party-House Mom Facing Manslaughter Charges" »

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Posted In: Auto Accidents , DRAM Shop Law , Drunk Driving Accident , Personal Injury

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She will spend the next four years in prison for DUI manslaughter. Many are saying she got off lucky. It was bad enough when last April, the 25-year-old woman side-swiped a van on I-295 near San Jose Boulevard. But instead of staying at the scene of the early morning wreck, police say she drove away.

She might have gotten away with it, but when she left the scene, she kept driving and then lost control of her pickup truck on Crown Point Road and struck a tree. As often happens with people who are driving while under the influence of alcohol, she was uninjured, but her 30-year-old male passenger died at the scene. Despite the death of her passenger, the woman took off on foot and was eventually tracked down by K-9 teams.

The woman pled guilty to DUI manslaughter. This week she was sentenced.

We wonder how the family of her passenger feels about her four years behind bars. According to state guidelines, the woman could have received 15 years for a felony in the second degree. Leaving the scene, in this case twice, bumps the sentencing to a first degree felony.

The driver of any vehicle involved in a crash that results in the death of any person is required by Florida law 316.027 to immediately stop the vehicle at the scene of the crash or as close as possible, and remain at the scene.

You are required to stay and render aid and give information to any officer investigating the scene and to give aid to anyone injured at the scene including getting them to a doctor or hospital if that is requested by the injured person.

Continue reading "DUI Hit-and-Run Driver Sentenced" »

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Posted In: Auto Accidents , Drunk Driving Accident , Hit-and-Run Accident , Law & Information , Personal Injury , Wrongful Death

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California will begin testing a requirement that drivers convicted of DUI install a device in their vehicle that stops the car from starting if alcohol is detected on the driver. The driver’s breath gives him away. A breathalyzer will be installed in the car for five months under the law. Any detection of alcohol and the interlock device will keep the car from starting, even a small amount of alcohol. This is a six-year test pilot project.

A similar law went into effect in Florida in 2003, mandating that some drunken drivers have the ignition interlock device installed in their car.

Florida’s legal intoxication blood-alcohol level is 0.08 or more grams of alcohol per 100 milliliters of blood or a breath-alcohol level of 0.08 or more per 210 liters of breath.

Repeat DUI offenders and first-time offenders with a BAC over .15 would have to install the devices. The law would also apply to those who drove under the influence with a child in the car.

The law states that the lock will be installed for six months for first offenders and the lock will not allow the car to start unless the driver's blood alcohol content (BAC) is under 0.05.

With a second conviction, the driver must have an ignition interlock device operated or owned by the convicted person. A third conviction and they get a mandatory placement for a period of not less than two years. A third violation can bring you up to 12 months in jail and the mandatory placement for at least two years. Fines go up from there.

The law also states that for a third or subsequent violation, the offender must complete a DUI treatment course.

If you are pulled over and you do not have an approved interlock device, you will be subject to arrest for violating your driver’s license restriction.

Continue reading "Ignition Devices Could Stop Repeat DUI Offenders" »

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Posted In: Auto Accidents , Drunk Driving Accident , Law & Information , Personal Injury

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Florida driver deaths appear to be substantially down this year according to the Florida Highway Patrol. Seven were killed and the FHP says 136 impaired drivers were arrested during the four day Labor Day weekend. However, the total number of wrongful death auto crashes in Florida has not been released yet. In 2008 during the Labor Day period, 36 people died in crashes.

In addition to the arrests, FHP officers issued over 16,000 citations. That huge number resulted from Labor Day enforcement that was part of a larger effort beginning August 21 and running through September 7th. During that time period, FHP issued more than 57,000 traffic tickets and made 540 arrests for DUI of alcohol or drugs and 20,000 received citations for speeding.
In addition, law enforcement was out in force to watch for violations of the Move Over Law. Troopers issued 2,200 citations for violating that law.

The Move Over Law refers to protecting law enforcement when they are parked on the side of the road to help motorists. It states that:

• On a two-lane roadway, you are required to slow to a speed that is 20 miles per hour less than the posted speed limit.


• If the speed limit is 20 miles per hour or less, you must slow down to five miles per hour.


• If you are driving on an interstate or roadway with multiple lanes of travel in the same direction, and you approach an emergency or law enforcement vehicle parked along the roadway, you must vacate the lane closest to that vehicle as soon as it is safe to do so. If you are not able to safely move over, you must slow down to a speed of 20 MPH below the posted speed limit unless directed otherwise by a law enforcement officer.

Continue reading "Labor Day Deaths on Florida Roads" »

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Posted In: Auto Accidents , Drunk Driving Accident , Personal Injury , Wrongful Death

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It sounds like a comedy skit, except it is not funny. A man was driving his motorcycle naked on I-75 in Marion County early Tuesday morning. A Marion County deputy was driving when he stopped the naked man, a 45-year-old, at a red light. There were no answers to the question why he was naked but the deputy did get an answer from his breathalyzer test – a blood alcohol level above .08. The man was legally drunk. This was not a surprise.

The motorcyclist was charged with what was his fifth DUI. Jail records showed he was later released on $20,000 bail.

The U.S. is the most lenient nation when it comes to DUI. In Europe, many countries say if you drink, you don’t drive. The general standard for DUI there is 0.05 BAC. Caught over the limit, you are cited and your car is towed. You can lose your license and go to jail for a first offense.

In Dubai, for example, drinking and driving brings you a six month jail sentence. No questions asked. No exceptions. Zero alcohol tolerance.

Zero tolerance means different things in different places. It is illegal in every state for someone under the age of 21 to purchase and publicly possess alcoholic beverages. 46 states, including Florida, have established lower blood alcohol concentrations (BAC) for young drivers. That’s because the federal government reports nearly one-third of all deaths of 15-to-20 year olds result from motor vehicle crashes and one third of them are alcohol-related. In Florida it is .02 for those under the age of 21 driving a vehicle under the state’s “Zero Tolerance” policy.
In Florida an “Enhances Penalty” will be brought if the driver has a BAC particularly high, typically .15 to .20. DUI offenders with a BAC at or above those levels can expect to face additional jail time.

Florida’s “Implied Consent” laws mean that someone driving who is suspected of DUI must submit to some form of a chemical test such as breath, blood or urine testing. If they refuse? They can lose their license usually for six months to a year.

Continue reading "Naked Motorcyclist – 5th DUI" »

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Posted In: Auto Accidents , Drunk Driving Accident , Motorcycle Accident , Personal Injury

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The Florida Highway Patrol reports that two people were injured last Wednesday when a pickup truck driver lost control of his vehicle and rolled, landing on its roof. According to FHP, a 21-year-old man was driving on SR A1A around 1:19 a.m. at the intersection of Grandview Road near St. Augustine Beach.

The driver was taken to Shands Jacksonville with serious injuries after being thrown from the pickup and through a privacy fence. His passenger, also a 21-year-old male, was trapped in the truck and taken to Flagler Hospital.

A blood alcohol test will be conducted and charges could be filed depending on the result. We wish these young men the best for a speedy recovery. The responding officers did a great job in getting the second man out of the vehicle and to the hospital.

I wish we knew more information such as, what kind of car was involved. Was a cell phone found at the scene and had the driver been texting? Were the occupants wearing their seat belts? What speed were they traveling and what were the road conditions at the time?

We hope these young men pull through, but speeding or road conditions and any of the above, including alcohol consumption, just doesn’t mix with driving.

Florida had more than 22,000 alcohol related crashes with more than 1,100 alcohol related fatalities across the state in 2008. Additionally there were more than 15,700 alcohol related injuries. Labor Day weekend in Florida is reported to be among the deadliest for drivers. Last year 36 people lost their lives on Florida roads and alcohol contributed to 12 of those deaths.

Continue reading "Two Hurt in Single Vehicle Wreck" »

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Posted In: Auto Accidents , Drunk Driving Accident , Law & Information , Personal Injury , Rollover Accident , Wrongful Death

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An 18-year-old, who was driving a pickup truck that rolled and killed a passenger last January, has been charged with DUI manslaughter, according to a story. The 18-year-old male of Bryceville was driving eastbound on Roy Booth Road, just south of Callahan, when his truck veered off the road at a curve, then traveled through a ditch, back across the roadway and then overturned. A 20-year-old male passenger of Callahan was killed.

We offer our sincere condolences to the family of this young man who left this world at such a young age. The Florida Highway Patrol investigated and determined that the 18-year old was the driver. Initially there were some claims he wasn’t, and that alcohol was involved. DUI manslaughter charges will be added to vehicular manslaughter, driving with a suspended license, and failure to wear a seat belt. The 18-year-old in this Florida drunk driving accident faces fifteen years in prison for one night of carelessness in his criminal case.

In a civil case, a personal injury attorney will need to be involved to ensure the defendant is not allowed to deny that DUI was a factor in any wrongful death lawsuit to follow. Determining the driver was drunk establishes that they were driving recklessly and could open the door to punitive damages against the drunk driving teen.

In this particular case, it is not clear why the decedent was ejected from the pickup truck. Family members may want to determine whether he was wearing a seat belt and whether the restraint system worked as it is supposed to. Generally, the assumption is that the passenger was not wearing a seat belt, when the truth may be that the product, the seat belt, was defective in some way. In that case, the family may have a Florida auto product liability action against the vehicle manufacturer or the maker of the seat belt.

Continue reading "Nassau County DUI Accident Kills Passenger " »

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Posted In: Auto Accidents , Auto Product Liability , Drunk Driving Accident , Personal Injury , Product Liability , Rollover Accident , Wrongful Death

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A 16-year-old high school girl was killed early Monday morning on July 27, 2009 when a pickup truck in which she was riding along with six others, over corrected, then struck a curb and overturned, according to an article. The teen, a student at Lee High School, was thrown from the vehicle and pronounced dead at the scene. We are so sorry for the loss of this young person. Our hearts go out to her family at this tragic time.

We now know that there were six people in all were in the small pickup truck, three in the cab and three in the bed. All three in the bed were thrown out when the vehicle appeared to be traveling too fast around a curve in Bartram Park Boulevard, according to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office. Another passenger from the cab is also reported to be in critical condition with a broken neck, vertebra, and broken ribs. Altogether, four others were injured. The car crash in Jacksonville happened around 4 a.m. according to JSO. Alcohol use was involved, according to law enforcement.

Investigators have determined the teens were at a birthday party that wrapped up early Monday morning. When the party was over, the three jumped into the truck bed for the ride home.

The driver is now identified as a 19-year-old whose birthday everyone had just celebrated.

Continue reading "Jacksonville Rollover Pick-Up Truck Accident Kills Teen" »

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Posted In: Auto Accidents , Drunk Driving Accident , Personal Injury , Rollover Accident , Wrongful Death

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Today is day one of Operation C.A.R.E. that stands for Combined Accident Reduction Effort and is being conducted by the Florida Highway Patrol. Those of you on the roads for the next 72-hours will be watched very carefully for speeding, not wearing your seat belt, and DUI. The CARE program and increased traffic patrols runs through Sunday.

FHP is very serious and plans to conduct DUI checkpoints and have DUI teams driving through areas looking for those of you driving under the influence.

Additional radar, laser, motorcycles, and marked and unmarked patrol vehicles will be on the road as well as aircraft to spot violators from the air, then direct troopers to pull them over. All of this is intended to reduce the number of crashes expected.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has found that the Independence Day weekend is the deadliest for motor vehicle accidents in Florida and across the country – with 161 deaths on that day alone in 2004. This year, if you are on the road and see someone behind the wheel who should not be, FHP has set up a number – dial *FHP (*347) from your cell phone and you can report an aggressive driver and also request roadside assistance as well.

Enjoy the fireworks, our great country, stay well and don't become another statistic.

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Posted In: Drunk Driving Accident

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Cleveland Browns wide receiver Donte Stallworth is facing DUI manslaughter charges for hitting a pedestrian crossing a Miami causeway March 14th, according to a report. Stallworth’s Bentley hit the man early in the morning as the pedestrian was running to catch a bus home from his construction job.

There are a couple of things to consider in this fatal drunk driving accident in Florida. The pedestrian, Mario Reyes, 59, was not crossing in the crosswalk. Technically, that could put him at fault since Florida does not have the same consideration of pedestrians as California does. You stop for a pedestrian in California- period.

But Stallworth’s blood-alcohol measured .126 after hitting and killing Reyes and for that, Stallworth, 28, could face up to 15 years in prison.

Police said that the NFL player had been drinking at the Fountainbleu Hotel on South Beach and was going home around 7 a.m. Stallworth saw Reyes. He blinked his lights at him as a warning. He was also driving about 50 in a 40 mph zone. One factor that Stallworth does have on his side is that stopped and told police that he hit the man lying in the road.

Stallworth had just signed a seven-year $35 million contract with the Browns just before he was injured and sat out much of the year.

The Miami-Dade State Attorney says it best and it bears repeating. “If you are going to drink, don’t drive.”

Continue reading "NFL Player Donte Stallworth Faces Charges for Killing Man in Pedestrian Accident " »

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Posted In: Auto Accidents , Drunk Driving Accident , Personal Injury

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