Page 12 - Florida Sentinel 8-23-16 Online Edition

Local
Wrong-Way Driver
Passenger In Traffic Accident Dies
The passenger in a vehicle in- volved in a traffic accident Sat- urday night died. The accident took place on U. S. 301 near Jordan Road, in Dade City.
According to police, a 2004 Oldsmobile Alero, driven by James Diggins, 54, of Lutz, collided with a 1995 Lincoln Town Car, driven by John Bryant, 52, of Dade City.
Both Diggins and his pas- senger, Leonard Pasco, of Zephyrhills, were injured and transported to Lakeland Re- gional Medical Center. Dig- gins was listed in serious condition. However, Pasco, 48, died after reaching the hos- pital.
Bryant was traveling with Martha Johnson, 39, Carrie Spencer, 23, and Aubrey Spencer, 2, all of Dade City; and Meriyah Avant, 1, of Webster. They all reported minor injuries.
Police said Bryant and all of his passengers were wearing seat belts at the time of the crash. They have not deter- mined if Diggins and Pasco were wearing seat belts. The in- vestigation is continuing and charges are pending.
Driver Who Caused
Facing Charges
3-Car Accident
After Police Chase
Charged With DUI
Last Wednesday, police ar- rested a man after a chase first by vehicle and later on foot. He is facing several charges.
Circumstances leading up to the chase and arrest began when the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, received a call about a motorcyclist traveling the wrong-way on Interstate 4. The driver described the mo- torcyclist as a Black man who was riding westbound in the eastbound lanes of the inter- state.
Deputies on the ground as well as the Aviation Officers responded to the area where the man was observed. Police observed a man fitting the de- scription traveling south- bound on I-75. The man then exited the Interstate at State Road 60.
Deputies stopped the motor- cyclist at the intersection of Barnes and Noble, near Bran- don Town Center. The driver, identified as Corey Levon Johnson, Jr., told deputies that the rear portion of his seat had blown off and he was look- ing for it when traveling in the wrong direction on the Inter- state.
Deputies asked Johnson to turn the vehicle off and dis- mount. Instead of following their direction, Johnson, 22, fled the scene on the motorcy- cle. However, the Aviation Unit was on the scene and tracked him, giving directions to the ground units. The Avia- tion Unit continued to follow him and informed deputies that he had stopped at a Citgo Station at Adamo Drive and Wayne Place, police said.
Johnson entered the busi- ness and purchased a tee-shirt. By the time he exited the store deputies had arrived and se- cured the motorcycle.
Johnson fled on foot, with the Aviation Unit tracking him as he jumped several fences.
COREY LEVON
JOHNSON, JR.
... Facing numerous charges
Eventually, Johnson arrived back at Adamo Drive and fran- tically tried to wave down east- bound drivers. A truck driver stopped and Johnson, who lives in Lakeland, reportedly offered him money for a ride.
Sensing something was wrong, police said, the driver refused. At that point, John- son is alleged to have opened the truck door and attempted to physically remove the driver from the truck. The driver re- sisted, fighting Johnson off.
When Johnson couldn’t obtain the truck, he again fled on foot as deputies ap- proached him. However, a cit- izen had observed the activity and help deputies take John- son into custody.
Johnson was charged with fleeing to elude at a high speed, driving with suspended, cancelled, or revoked license, resisting an officer without vi- olence, carjacking, and bat- tery. He was transported to the Hillsborough County Jail where he was being held with- out bond.
Police said the owner of the motorcycle responded to the scene and took possession of the motorcycle.
A 70-year-old man was taken into custody Sunday night after being involved in a traffic accident. The accident took place at the intersection of E. Fowler Avenue and N. 15th Street.
According to police, a Hills- borough County Sheriff’s deputy was stopped on N. 15th Street, with one car stopped behind him. A third car, driven by Alfredo Ro- driguez-Jimenez, of Tampa, approached the stopped cars and struck the back of the second car. This resulted in the second car striking the marked police cruiser.
The deputy did not sustain any injuries and returned to work. Two adults in the sec- ond vehicle were transported to Florida Hospital as a pre- caution after complaining about minor injuries.
ALFREDO RODRIGUEZ- JIMENEZ
Rodriguez-Jimenez was taken into custody and charged with DUI with prop- erty damage. He was trans- ported to the Hillsborough County Jail. He was released after posting a $500 bond.
Driver Gets Killed In Traffic
Bicyclist Accident
40-Year Sentence
A bicyclist died after being struck by a vehicle Friday night. The accident took place at the intersection of Bearss Avenue and N. 16th Street, around 9:30 p.m.
According to the Hillsbor- ough County Sheriff’s Office, the name of the adult male bi- cyclist has not been released pending notification of his next of kin.
Police said the man was struck by a vehicle driven by Ms. Heather Gallman, 32, of Tampa. Ms. Gallman was driving westbound on Bearss Avenue in the outside lane when a white, unknown vehicle quickly changed lanes in front of her to avoid striking the bi- cyclist. Ms. Gallman was not able to avoid the collision and the front of her vehicle struck the bicycle.
The man died at the scene. Police said the man was not in the marked crosswalk, he was wearing dark clothing and his bicycle did not have any lights on it.
No charges are expected to be filed in the case, police said.
In Death Of Couple
On Friday, Pinellas County Judge Philip Federico sen- tenced Anthony Apollo Nee- ley to 40 years in prison in connection with a traffic acci- dent resulting in death.
Neeley was convicted of the accident in June.
According to court docu- ments, Neeley ran a red light at the intersection of 58th Street and Central Avenue, on November 27, 2014. His vehi- cle struck a Nissan Quest driven by Marjorie Suther- land, who suffered minor in- juries.
Neeley didn’t stop, and was reportedly speeding at more than 100 miles per hour when he struck a Toyota Corolla on 34th Street, police said.
The occupants of the Toy- ota, Doug Simpson, 64, and his wife, Christina Simp- son, 53, died instantly, police
ANTHONY NEELEY
said.
Officials said Neeley had a
blood alcohol level of more than 0.10, which is higher than the level of 0.08 that the state considers impaired.
PAGE 12 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY TUESDAY, AUGUST 23, 2016