Teen Driver in Tampa Arrested for Head-On Collision with Off-Duty Officer

By Orlando Personal Injury Attorney on October 11, 2021

According to preliminary incident reports from the Tampa Police Department, a seventeen-year-old was taken into custody early Friday morning near the USF campus and charged with driving under the influence for their alleged involvement in a series of hit-and-run accidents, including a crash with an off-duty police officer.

At approximately 2:30 a.m. on Friday, October 8, 2021, customers at the Ivy Rose nightclub on Fowler Avenue started to approach an off-duty police officer about a driver in a dark pickup truck that had crashed into a set of vehicles in the parking lot. After receiving a helpful tip from another motorist about which direction the pickup truck turned after leaving the bar, the officer headed northbound on LeRoy Collins Boulevard in her SUV searching for the alleged hit-and-run driver.

After traveling a short distance down the street, the officer spotted the suspect’s pickup truck driving the wrong way along LeRoy Collins Boulevard headed directly toward her sport utility vehicle. The officer quickly pulled over and illuminated the SUV’s emergency lights, but her attempts to stop the teenage driver did not work and the pickup crashed head-on into the officer’s car.

Emergency response teams with the Tampa Police Department arrived at the scene of the accident within a matter of minutes and transported the officer to Tampa General Hospital to receive medical treatment for a few minor lacerations she sustained after her SUV’s airbag deployed during the crash. She was released later that day.

Investigators with the Tampa Police Department determined that the teenage driver was displaying signs of impairment while they were being detained and questioned about the hit-and-run accidents in the parking lot prior to their crash with the police officer. The young pickup truck driver was arrested on DUI charges and was taken to the local jail.

For over forty-four years, Tampa auto accident attorney James O. Cunningham has been diligently representing the victims who have been severely injured in hit-and-run collisions, wrong-way accidents, pedestrian accidents, side-impact collisions, and head-on car crashes. For additional information or to speak with an associate regarding your claim, please submit a contact form on our website or call our office directly at 877-FL-INJURY to make an appointment.

James O. Cunningham

Since 1977, personal injury lawyer James Cunningham has provided effective legal advocacy to people who are injured through the negligent actions of another person or entity throughout the Central Florida area. He fights to obtain recoveries for his clients’ physical and emotional pain and suffering and pursues his clients’ personal injury cases with a commitment to excellence and impeccable preparation.