Young Driver Faces Serious Charges for Polk County Hit-and-Run Crash

By Orlando Personal Injury Attorney on August 17, 2023

According to the Florida Highway Patrol operating in Polk County, an eighteen-year-old man has been taken into custody for his alleged connection to a hit-and-run collision last Sunday morning along Ronald Reagan Parkway that seriously injured two people.

Although this incident is still under investigation, preliminary auto accident reports from the Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) indicate that it was shortly after midnight on August 13, 2023, when an on-duty trooper was performing routine speed checks near the intersection of Champions Gate Boulevard and Ronald Reagan Parkway in Four Corners. At approximately 12:17 a.m., eighteen-year-old Haines City resident Ramon Santiago-Garcia drove past the FHP vehicle in a red 2015 Ford Mustang, reaching speeds of nearly 80 miles per hour in a 45 MPH zone. The officer activated the cruiser’s emergency lights and a pursuit ensued.

Once the driver of the Ford Mustang realized he was being followed by law enforcement, Santiago-Garcia switched off his vehicle’s headlights and sped away in an attempt to lose the pursuing trooper. He was temporarily successful until he reached the intersection of Pine Tree Trail and Ronald Reagan Parkway where he slammed into a 2008 Nissan Pathfinder. Ramon Santiago-Garcia and an unnamed passenger then fled the scene of the crash on foot, while leaving another person in the back seat of the Ford Mustang.

Polk County emergency responders and members of the Florida Highway Patrol were dispatched to the crash site where they found the 22-year-old female driver of the Nissan Pathfinder and her 20-year-old female passenger suffering from severe injuries. Both women were transported to the nearest trauma center in serious condition. The injured passenger from the back seat of the Ford Mustang was also taken to the hospital with undisclosed injuries.

The first passenger who left the hit-and-run collision with Ramon Santiago-Garcia was apprehended by Polk County authorities shortly after the crash occurred, but the 18-year-old driver wasn’t located until later Sunday afternoon at his Haines City residence.

Ramon Santiago-Garcia was arrested and taken to Polk County Jail. He faces several charges, including reckless driving causing serious bodily injury and leaving the scene of a crash involving serious bodily injury.

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.