News

At the Law Offices of William K Saron, we strive to keep Floridians informed of relevant issues including serious accidents, pedestrian accidents, car accidents, slip and fall injuries and dog bites. We handle cases in Pinellas County and throughout all of Florida. If you have been injured in an accident, call the Law Offices of William K. Saron and let us fight for you.

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Car Accidents

• Two Paramedics and Police Officer Injured in Pinellas Park Car Accident
  Sep 10, 2009

  A man was arrested after he crashed into an accident scene on U.S. 19 on the evening of Monday, September 7, 2009.  The Pinellas Park car accident injured two paramedics and a police officer.

  The driver, 21-year-old Kevin Lee Chaney, was arrested and is being charged for leaving the scene of an accident involving injury, driving with a suspended or revoked license, reckless driving and driving under the influence.

  The police officer, John Coleman, was treated for shoulder and leg injuries and released from Bayfront Medical Center.  He is now recovering at home.  Coleman was hit by his cruiser from the impact of the crash.

  The accident occurred when Chaney was traveling south on U.S. 19 in the right lane, tried to swerve around stopped traffic by going into the left lane and lost control after going back into the right lane.  He hit Coleman’s cruiser, which had been blocking traffic from an earlier accident.

  Coleman and two paramedics were injured when they jumped over a concrete barrier to avoid being hit.  Chaney’s vehicle stopped against a car that had been part of the original accident.

  Chaney failed a roadside sobriety test and had a 0.219 blood alcohol reading.

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• St. Petersburg Mom Guilty of Manslaughter after Car Accident
  Sep 04, 2009

  Two years ago, Lesa Ledesma let her 15-year-old son drive her car, even though he was too young to have a license.  Her son, Shawn, crashed into a tree and his 14-year-old passenger was killed.

  Ledesma has pleaded guilty to manslaughter and was sentenced to 30 days in jail and will be on probation for five years for her involvement with the Florida car accident.  Two of those years will be spent on house arrest.  Normally, a manslaughter conviction has a sentence of 9 ½ to 15 years in prison.

  This case is one of the first in the country where prosecutors charged a parent with manslaughter for letting a child drive without a license. 

  The fatal car accident took place in September 2007, when Shawn asked his mom if he could borrow her car to give some girls a ride.  Lesa eventually agreed.  As Shawn was driving back with six teenagers in his car, he hit a curb and crashed into a tree on 62nd Avenue N.  Raquel Carreras was ejected through the sun roof of the Saturn and was killed.

  Ledesma’s attorney said that the trial could have gone either way and that the agreement made was a good one.

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• St. Petersburg Bus Accident Injures Five People
  Aug 27, 2009

  A St. Petersburg bus accident led to the injuries of five people on the evening of Tuesday, August 25, 2009.  The crash occurred when the bus and a car struck head-on.

  At approximately 6:30 PM, Albert Ortiz was driving his Pinellas Suncoast Transity Authority bus east on 15th Avenue South when he collided with a 1990 Buick driven by 24-year-old Shanikwa Thomas.  Thomas had been traveling the opposite direction with her two small children.

  The impact of the crash caused Thomas’s car to go backward approximately 80 feet.  According to police, the accident occurred when Thomas attempted to pass three vehicles by crossing a double yellow line.

  Thomas and her two children, 4-year-old Leandre Grant and 6-year-old Caliaha Thomas were injured in the crash.  They were taken to Bayfront Medical Center with Thomas in critical condition and her two children in serious condition.

  At the time of the bus crash, there were three passengers, along with the driver.  One passenger and Ortiz sustained non-life threatening injuries and were taken to St. Anthony’s for treatment.

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• Car Accident in Florida Causes Damage to Hollywood Home
  Aug 20, 2009

  According to John Marese, he was adjusting his home’s air conditioning when he saw his own truck crash into the side of his house.  The collision made a huge hole in the wall.

  Marese’s truck had been parked outside his home when a man in a white Toyota sedan rammed into it.  “I was knocked to the floor,” said 27-year-old Marese from the impact of the accident.

  The driver of the white Toyota sedan was found slumped over his steering wheel.  Apparently the driver had first hit a fishing boat before hitting the 2001 Dodge Ram.  Witnesses said that they saw the car spin 180 degrees before hitting the house.

  “If my truck had not been there, I would be dead,” said Marese.  The Florida car accident happened on the corner of McKinley Street and 22nd Avenue.

  Eric Russell, the 27-year-old driver of the sedan, had to be extricated from his vehicle by Hollywood fire rescue.  Russell had been involved in an earlier accident and had fled the scene, according to police.  The hit and run accident had occurred on Sheridan Street and Federal Highway.

  The car Russell had been driving had been reported stolen and he was listed as a suspect in a police report.

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• Tragic Car Accident Near Golden Glades
  Aug 17, 2009

  According to the Florida Highway Patrol, a woman died and a man and baby were critically injured in a car accident on Interstate 95 near the Golden Glades interchange.  The tragic auto accident occurred at approximately 9:00 AM on Saturday, August 15, 2009.

  The crash took place when a Mercury sedan smashed into the back of a dump truck that was parked in the left emergency lane of I-95, said FHP spokesman Pat Santangelo.

  The southbound lanes of I-95 from the Golden Glades interchange to south of Northwest 135th Street were closed for more than three hours as the Florida Highway Patrol conducted its investigation.  However, investigators are still not sure what caused the crash.  Santangelo did say that the right, rear tire of the Mercury was smooth to the touch.

  The three accident victims had all been in the Mercury at the time of the accident, which included a 6-month-old baby.  The adult woman died at the accident scene and the infant and adult man were transported to Jackson Memorial Hospital’s Ryder Trauma Center.  The names of the victims have not been released.

  No one is believed to have been inside the dump truck at the time of the fatal crash.

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• Texting and Driving a Problem in Florida
  Aug 04, 2009

  Texting and driving is believed to be the cause of numerous fatal accidents, including one that occurred in Central Florida. 

  Last year, 26-year-old Heather Hurd and 37-year-old Stephanie Phills were killed when a truck driver reached for his hand-held device to send a text message to his office and crashed into traffic at a stoplight on U.S. 27.  The trucker caused a 10-car pileup and was cited for careless driving, which is a non-criminal offense that has a $500 fine.

   A few months ago, a Tampa high school student crashed into a police car while she was texting.  As a result, she caused $3,000 in damages.

  Miami-Dade Judge Steve Leifman, head of traffic court, has witnessed a growing number of crash cases where cell phone usage was a factor.  He also said that people are distracted in many ways, including brushing their teeth, putting on makeup, eating, combing their hair and texting and cell phone use.

  According to Charles Golvin, an analyst for Forrester Research, as there are more programs designed to reach people on their cell phones, the potential to get distracted is increasing. The threat “is absolutely real,” says Golvin.

  To raise the awareness of the dangers of texting and driving, the Florida Highway Patrol launched its Stay Alive, Just Drive campaign and handed out pamphlets regarding the dangers.

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• Dunedin Motorcycle Accident Kills Motorcyclist
  Jul 29, 2009

  A motorcyclist was killed in a Dunedin motorcycle accident early morning on Saturday, July 25, 2009, after hitting a palm tree on Edgewater Drive.

  James Johnston, a 28-year-old Clearwater resident, was fatally injured in the crash that occurred near the intersection of Locklie Street, according to deputies.

  Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office said that witnesses reported seeing Johnston traveling on his green Kawasaki motorcycle southbound on Edgewater Drive shortly before 2:00 AM.  Apparently witnesses saw Johnston go into the northbound lane to pass a vehicle when he swerved out of the way of another oncoming car, which caused him to hit the curb.

  The fatal motorcycle accident is being investigated by the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office.  Investigators said that Johnston actually hit a palm tree, not the curb, which caused him to be ejected from his motorcycle.

  Johnston was airlifted to Bayfront Medical Center where he was pronounced dead at approximately 3:30 AM.  According to deputies, Johnston was wearing a helmet at the time of the fatal motorcycle crash.

  Johnston worked for Vertex Business Services, located in Tampa.

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• Fatal Car Accident in Fort Meyers
  Jul 15, 2009

  A tragic head-on car accident in south Fort Meyers led to the deaths of two women early morning on Sunday, July 12, 2009. 

  According to the Florida Highway Patrol, Madelyn Gager, a 29-year-old woman, and Melissa Cremasco, a 30-year-old woman, were killed in the Florida car crash.

  Florida Highway Patrol reported that Gager was driving a 2007 Dodge northbound on San Carlos Blvd., when she drifted into the center lane near Cinnamon Cove Blvd.  At the same time, Peter Bernat, a 49-year-old man from Fort Meyers, was driving southbound and merged into the left turn lane at Cinnamon Cove Blvd.  The two vehicles collided at approximately 12:44 AM.

  Cremasco was the passenger in Gager’s car and was pronounced dead at the crash scene.  Gager was taken to Lee Memorial Hospital where she was later pronounced dead.  Both women were wearing seat belts at the time of the collision.

  Bernat was seriously injured in the car accident, according to Florida Highway Patrol.

  Gager left behind two sons.

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• Man Injured in Semi-Truck Accident on I-75 in Florida
  Jul 06, 2009

  The driver of the vehicle that rear-ended a semi truck on Interstate 75 was airlifted to the hospital in critical condition.  According to Florida Highway Patrol troopers, the Florida truck accident occurred late Wednesday evening on July 1, 2009.  The crash occurred between the U.S. 27 and County Road 326 interchanges.

  The semi truck was traveling in the outside lane on I-75 and had slowed down because of construction traffic.  Ernest L. Jones, a 50-year-old man from Snellville, Georgia, was driving a 2002 BMW SUV when he smashed into the back of the semi.  Firefighters were quickly on the scene.

  Jones had to be extricated from his vehicle by firefighters.  He was then taken by ambulance to a nearby helicopter that flew him to Shands at the University of Florida in Gainesville.

  Christohper Hovey, a 36-year-old Jackonsville resident, had been driving the semi truck at the time of the crash.  Hovey was not injured in the accident and declined to comment when he was contacted by reporters.

  Hovey was heading to Miami to drop off a load of paper.  Eagle Xpress, based in Michigan is the trucking company.

  Traffic was backed up for hours due to the accident.

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• One Person Killed in Accident on Sunshine Skyway Bridge
  Jul 02, 2009

  One person was fatally injured after a car accident on Sunshine Skyway Bridge in St. Petersburg on the morning of Sunday, June 28, 2009.  The fatal Florida car accident involved a man and woman who were ejected from their vehicle on the strip of Interstate 275 north.

  The crash involved three vehicles in the southbound lanes, which occurred at approximately 2:40 AM between Skyway and the Dick Misener Bridge, said St. Petersburg Fire Rescue Lt. Joel Granata.

  One of the accident victims was taken to Bayfront Medical Center for treatment for their injuries.  The Florida Highway Patrol stated that southbound lanes were shut down following the fatal car crash, but were later re-opened that day.

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