Tampa Injury Lawyer - Damages part two

By Nicholas Dorsten, Esq.

We have talked about punitive damages for wrongful death before (see here)howeve this time we are going to continue on part two for DUI damages (see part one here) Article courtesy of the Times website...

TAMPA — Seconds before crashing into pedestrians on the Harbour Island Bridge last fall, killing two, a Riverview dentist hit a top speed of 89 mph, prosecutors learned.

The dentist's blood alcohol level — 0.13 percent — exceeded the level at which the state presumes impairment, records show.

"I'm the designated driver tonight," he said at the scene, according to a police dashboard camera. "I was driving those two girls around after having a party. I haven't had anything to drink."

Those were among the details included in documents, video and audio files released Monday by the Hillsborough County State Attorney's Office in the case against the car crash defendant, 35.

He is charged with causing the deaths of two people, who were on a bridge sidewalk early Oct. 30 when the car accident defendant's 2011 Cadillac coupe spun out of control and hit them, authorities said. A third pedestrian broke an ankle jumping out of the way.

The three had just left work at the Marriott Waterside Hotel.

The records depict a bloody and chaotic scene.

One wrongful death victim, 24, died of head injuries after she was slammed against the bridge's wall. The impact threw the other wrongful death victim, 23, over the wall, and he landed in a "rope-like retaining fence," the Medical Examiner's Office reported. Heart lacerated, he died at the scene.

A data recorder that police recovered from the Cadillac put the car's speed at 89 mph seconds before the crash.

The speed limit on the bridge is 30 mph.

Twelve weeks earlier, the car accident defendant had been cited for driving 90 mph in a 45 mph zone. He pleaded no contest, paid $341 and attended the Advanced Defensive Driving School, county records show. That was his seventh speeding ticket, state records show.

The night of the fatal crash, he had two people with him in the car: his wife, and a friend, both employees of his dental practice.

The three had attended a Halloween party at the Sheraton Hotel staged by 13 Ugly Men, a Tampa social and charitable group.

The auto accident defendant's wife told investigators that the party was "lame" and that the three were headed to another party at Jackson's Bistro.

Officers noted that the dentist wore black contact lenses as part of a Halloween costume. Outside the contacts, his eyes appeared red and bloodshot, the report said. His breath smelled of alcohol.

The car accident defendant refused to take a breath test, police reported.

At the scene, he was initially unaware anyone had been hurt. An officer wrote in his report that he became argumentative.

"Why do you keep looking at me?" Moye reportedly said. "I didn't do anything wrong. All I did was pass a cab and lose control."

His wife sat on a bench and complained about damage to the car, the report stated. It's unclear whether anyone told her about victims.

"I told him not to drive," she told police. "I told him he shouldn't of drove. But look at my car. … My poor hundred thousand car is totaled. I worked so hard for that."

The car accident defendant began to fight with police officers, hitting an officer's hand and pushing his chest, the report said. Officers wrestled him to the ground and put him in handcuffs.

His wife jumped on an officer's back and was also handcuffed, the report said. The passenger, Sady, was handcuffed after she tried to walk away. Neither woman has been charged.

In statements to detectives, the two said they did not remember much about the crash.

They said they had not seen him drink that night.

"Honestly, I drank more than probably everyone else in the car," his wife said, "so I really don't know what happened."

Her husband faces seven charges: two counts each of vehicular homicide, DUI manslaughter and DUI with property damage or personal injury, and one count of battery on a law enforcement officer.

No trial date has been set.

While the criminal case is pending, a judge ordered him not to drive or consume alcohol, and to remain home between the hours of 7 p.m. and 7 a.m.

He is still a practicing dentist with an active license.

At the crash scene, after he was read his rights, the auto accident defendant complained, profanely, about his treatment by police and said he planned to sue, according to video.

His demeanor changed when, finally, an officer told him that two people had died in the accident.

"Are you serious?" he asked.

"I'm very serious," the officer responded. The officer started to explain that he now would be required to submit to a blood draw.

"You're kidding me," he said.

The officer said he knew it was a shock.

Have you or a loved one been a victim of an automobile accident? Do you need the help of a Tampa Personal Injury Lawyer? Then contact the office of Blake & Dorsten, P.A. for a FREE consultation!

For more information, or to speak directly with an experienced Clearwater Personal Injury lawyer, please contact BLAKE & DORSTEN, P.A. at 727.286.6141 or email the attorneys your questions at: info@blakedorstenlaw.com