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

• Drag Racing Believed to be a Factor in Florida Auto Accident
  Jun 29, 2009

  Police said that two men were probably drag racing, which is illegal, on Krome Avenue when their fatal Florida auto accident took place.  Both men were killed early Saturday, June 27, 2009 when their car crashed into a large tow truck near Southwest 263rd Street.

  The Florida auto accident occurred at approximately 6:00 AM.  The collision involved a white Volkswagon Jetta that was driving at “very high speeds” and a flatbed tow truck.  The Jetta smashed into the rear of the truck, which killed the two young men.  According to Florida Highway Patrol Spokesman Pat Santangelo, the two men were found dead in the Jetta.

  The Jetta’s roof was peeled back after jamming under the rear of the Sunshine Towing truck.  The driver of the tow truck was not injured in the crash.  One witness said that they saw the Jetta racing another vehicle right before the accident occurred.  The other vehicle pulled to the side of the road before the collision.

  Authorities have not released the names of the crash victims.  As a result of the car crash, Krome Avenue, between Southwest 262nd and 263rd streets, was closed for hours while authorities conducted their investigation.  The street was not reopened until approximately 11:00 AM.

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• $5.5 Million Awarded Following St. Petersburg Car Accident
  Jun 22, 2009

  The widow of a man killed in a 2001 car accident near St. Petersburg has been awarded $5.5 million in a wrongful death lawsuit.  Gayle DeRycke said it wasn’t about the money, but that someone was finally held accountable for the car crash that killed her husband.

  Gayle DeRycke and her husband Douglas DeRycke were visiting friends and business associates in Florida when the tragic accident took place.  The couple was riding in a Mercury Mountaineer driven by Randall T. Knight.  Knight swerved while driving on Interstate 275 near 54th Avenue and lost control of the vehicle, which flipped over numerous times.

  The estate of Douglas DeRycke sued Knight and his employer, Packaging Corp. of America, based in Illinois.  The wrongful death lawsuit was originally filed in 2002, just one year after the auto accident.  However, it took a while getting through the system and there were many attorney changes and even a contempt of court charge and mistrial.

  The jury awarded the estate approximately $3.5 million for her loss of companionship and another $2 million for lost wages and other costs, such as funeral expenses.

  Gayle DeRycke says that she plans to establish college funds for her five grandchildren with the money.

   

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• Teen Killed in St. Petersburg Car Accident
  Jun 10, 2009

  Travis Kyle Martin, a 17-year-old Tampa resident, was killed on Thursday, June 4, 2009, when he lost control of his SUV as he approached Interstate 275.

  According to authorities, Martin was pronounced dead at the scene at 10:38 PM.

  He had been driving northbound in a white 2000 GMC Jimmy on Fourth Street, not far from the Howard Frankland Bridge when he lost control of his vehicle.

  Martin’s SUV veered off the road and hit a guardrail.  According to St. Petersburg Fire Rescue, his vehicle flipped over and he was ejected as it began to roll over.  The SUV eventually landed upright, but the teen was not wearing a seatbelt and was thrown onto the pavement.

  Thomas Martin, Travis’ father, was quoted as saying, “he was a good kid.  He was a safe driver, always went the speed limit.”

  His father described him as an avid musician who started playing drums when he was 13-years-old.  He eventually started playing guitar as well and was part of numerous rock bands during middle and high school.

  Martin was a junior in high school and was taking online classes through the Hillsborough County School District.

  At the time of the St. Petersburg car accident, Martin and his friend, Cameron Castellano, were heading home from a bandmate’s house.  Castellano said that Martin had swerved to avoid another car.

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• Florida Car Accident Takes the Life of Cultural Leader
  Jun 08, 2009

  Maria Esther Carrillo was killed and her daughter was critically injured in a Florida car accident. The 39-year-old cultural school founder was in Miami with her 17-year-old daughter when the accident took place.

  According to police, Maria and her daughter were returning to their car when a car and a pickup truck collided in the intersection, which caused the truck to spin onto the sidewalk where they were standing.  Maria died at the scene and her daughter was taken to Jackson Memorial Hospital in critical condition.

  Nicolas Prieto, president of Hispanic Youth Voice of Tampa, a group founded by Maria’s daughter, said that “she had several broken ribs and broken bones in her face and one of her lungs collapsed, but she is conscious now in stable condition and her brain wasn’t harmed.”

  The mother and daughter were supposed to be home at 3:00 AM, but when Maria’s husband, Francisco Carrillo hadn’t heard from them by 2:00 PM, he called the Miami police and was told about two unidentified women involved in an accident.

  When he arrived in Miami, he found out that those two women were his wife and daughter.

  It was reported that Maria pushed her daughter out of the way of the truck that was spinning out of control, which possibly caused her to take the full impact herself, while saving her daughter.

   

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• Man Injured in Florida Drunk Driving Accident is Optimistic
  Jun 04, 2009

  Andrew Hall lost his left leg in a Florida drunk driving accident on April 20th.  The 19-year-old was injured in an early morning accident as he stood in front of his house in Safety Harbor.  According to Pinellas County sheriff’s deputies, the driver of the Honda Accord that careened out of control and went up onto the sidewalk, was drunk.  The vehicle struck Hall.

  Joshua West, the 24-year-old driver of the Honda Accord, tried to run away after the Florida car accident, but was caught nearby.  West has a history of driving offenses, including a DUI charge.  He was picked up on May 15 in Pasco County by the U.S. Marshal’s Service task force after the state department of Corrections issued a warrant for his arrest on a probation violation.   West is jailed in Hillsborough County without bail.

  Five weeks after the tragic Florida auto accident, Hall is still in Bayfront Medical Center.  The wound is still exposed, his pelvis was shattered, his left arm was broken in six places and his right knee was dislocated.  He still battles infection, even though the internal bleeding is under control.

  Hall has been optimistic.  He knows his left leg is gone, but he plans to get a prosthetic leg in its place.  As a toddler, Hall was diagnosed with cerebral palsy and has struggled all his life to walk without assistance.  In an article Hall stated that “I’m going to walk again.  I’m going to walk out of here.”

  Hall has been an inspiration to many people.  He even received a letter from a woman saying that his story helped save her marriage.

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• Ex-Yankee Charged with DUI Manslaughter in Florida
  May 27, 2009

  Jim Leyritz, former major league baseball player, has been charged with DUI manslaughter in Florida.  Leyritz says the fatal accident that killed 30-year-old Fredia Ann Veitch was not his fault and he is planning on fighting the charges against him.

  The former New York Yankee told the Miami Herald that “there was no possibility of me avoiding that crash with all of my senses.  A mother was taken from her kids.  I can’t change that.  But I didn’t do it.  The accident did.  And that accident wasn’t my fault.”

  Prosecutors have a different opinion than Leyritz.  He is scheduled to face trial on September 14, 2009 in connection with his involvement in the fatal Florida car accident that occurred in December 2007.  According to law enforcement, Leyritz was driving drunk when he ran a red light in his SUV and caused the crash that killed Veitch in Fort. Lauderdale.  Authorities say Veitch was also drunk at the time of the accident.

  Leyritz’s life has already been impacted by the DUI manslaughter charges.  He said that he has had to sell memorabilia because he has no money and has stopped charity work because he has become a social pariah.  Leyritz has to breathe into a Breathalyzer machine every time he wants to start his car.  He has been reviewing witness testimony, police reports and deposition pages.  Also, he has visited the crash site several times to take pictures.

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• Former Channel 10 Anchor Faces DUI Charge in Florida
  May 20, 2009

  Jennifer Howe, a former WTSP- Channel 10 weekend anchor, faces charges of driving under the influence with an accident after being arrested on Sunday, May 10, 2009.  During a phone interview, Howe was crying as she said missing her 8-year-old daughter on Mother’s Day led to her horrible mistake.

  She said during the interview that it’s not a way to cope with anything and that she was deeply sorry. 

  According to court documents, Howe, a 43-year-old woman, was prohibited from having any contact with her daughter on April 22.  The court order states that she must “prove a substantial change in circumstances that she is drug and alcohol free,” before the court will consider allowing her to have contact with her daughter.

  Howe was approached by police in a CVS parking lot in St. Petersburg as she talked on her cell phone in the car.  They asked her for identification and later arrested her.

  Howe blamed a combination of antidepressants and anti-anxiety medication as the reason why she couldn’t remember the events that led up to the arrest.  St. Petersburg Police Officer Tonia Nave stated that a police report showed that Howe had a blood-alcohol level of 0.152 when she was booked approximately 90 minutes after the arrest.

  A witness said that Howe may have hit a school crossing sign and police officers did discover part of a plastic grille that matched damage to Howe’s vehicle.  Police also found evidence at her home that she backed her car out of the garage while the door was down.

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• Bicyclist Injured in St. Petersburg Accident
  May 12, 2009

  A bicyclist was seriously hurt after being involved in an accident with two SUVs near Fifth Avenue S and 16th Street S.  According to St. Petersburg Fire and Rescue, the bicyclist sustained life-threatening injuries following the crash on Thursday, May 7, 2009.

  Lt. Joel Granata said that the bicyclist was “at the wrong place at the wrong time.”

  The St. Petersburg bicycle accident was reported to authorities at 3:57 PM.  St. Petersburg Fire and Rescue said that a Nissan Xterra and a Toyota 4Runner collided and one of the SUVs injured the bicyclist.

  The bicyclist was discovered by firefighters underneath one of the SUVs, but they were able to get the victim out without having to raise the vehicle.

  The drivers of the two vehicles and the bicyclist were taken to Bayfront Medical Center.  The fire department stated that one of the drivers was also seriously injured in the accident.  The crash is currently being investigated by St. Petersburg police.

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• Oil Tanker Accident in St. Petersburg, Florida
  May 07, 2009

  An oil tanker overturned on Thursday, April 30, 2009, which closed the Interstate 275 ramps and blocks of 28th Street after oil spilled onto the road.

  Authorities shut down the road after hundreds of gallons of used oil spilled onto the street from a Tim’s Oil Reclamation tanker.  Apparently, the driver of the oil tanker lost control as he attempted to exit southbound I-275 at 28th Street S.

  Andre M. Phifer, the 44-year-old driver of the oil tanker, took the exit too fast and smashed into a curb along 28th Street, according to William Jolley, assistant chief of St. Petersburg Fire and Rescue.  The oil tanker came to a stop on its left side facing north.

  Jolley said that approximately 350 gallons of the 4,800 gallons of oil contained in the tanker, spilled when a cap on top of the tanker came off.  Officials believe that some of the oil went into the storm drains, but they are uncertain how much went in.  Sand was used to soak up the oil on the road near the tanker.

  The I-275 exit and entrance ramps at 28th Street were closed, as well as 28th Street from Eigth and 16th Avenues S.  The roads were reopened later that night.

  Phifer sustained a cut on his head as a result of the St. Petersburg truck accident and was taken to Bayfront Medical Center.

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• Wrong Way Driver in Florida Faces Second Degree Murder Charges
  Apr 28, 2009

  In September 2007, a man drove the wrong way on Interstate 275 in St. Petersburg, killing a St. Petersburg College student.  According to reports, Charles Hicks, a 34-year-old man, was driving north in the southbound lanes so fast that he hit another car and the outcome was catastrophic.  Hicks is now on trial for the death of Steven Cornell resulting from the fatal car accident in St. Petersburg.

  Cornell’s family members and friends came to court on Monday to hear the trial of Hicks who was being charged with second-degree murder, vehicular homicide and aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer.

  Hicks’ lawyer told jurors that the accident was tragic, but that they would not hear any proof that it was Hicks who committed the crimes in which he was being charged.  His lawyer also said that there were indications that there were three people in the car at the time of the accident and that Hicks was not in the drivers’ seat.

  Assistant State Attorney Scott Rosenwasser said that Hicks was driving recklessly and veered toward police officers.  According to one officer’s testimony, Hicks was driving so fast down 18th Avenue S that an officer called it in to dispatch to warn other officers and to see if someone could stop Hicks.

  Hicks tried to get away by going up a southbound exit ramp from I-275 and driving north in the southbound lanes.  Police were able to keep up with Hicks by driving up the northbound lanes on the interstate.

  Cornell was in the car with his sister when they collided with Hicks, killing Cornell as a result.

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