UFC Student Struck and Killed by Car in Seminole County
On Wednesday, close to 9:00 in the evening, a 21-year-old student of the University of Central Florida was out taking his traditional evening run when he was struck by a 2003 Toyota and killed. The Florida Highway Patrol responded to the emergency call and released the initial reports on the incident. From their statements, we know that the collision between the Toyota and the young man happened along Alafaya Trail, close to where it crosses Carrigan Avenue, and near to the city of Oviedo.
The young man, a Junior criminal justice major at UFC who was planning on becoming a police detective, was alone on Wednesday night as he went through his normal running routine. While it is not certain, it seems likely that the young man’s path often took him along this stretch of Alafaya Trail, although the report did not suggest that he had at any other point in time encountered any trouble with traffic.
The car, which was being driven by a 20-year-old man from Orange City, was traveling down the southern lanes of Alafaya Trail when he neared the area where the UFC student was jogging. Reports from the Florida Highway Patrol suggest that at the time the jogger attempted to cross the street, the person behind the wheel of the Toyota had the right of way. It is not clear just why the jogger, who was not new to the activity, felt that it was a good time to cross.
It is possible that, for one reason or another, the jogger simply did not see the car. It is also possible that they never checked for oncoming traffic. There were no pictures of the area where the collision took place, and it is therefore hard to comment on whether or not the location featured a crosswalk or if perhaps there was a sharp curve in the road or overgrown greenery that blocked the jogger’s sight line and led him to believe that the road was clear.
An investigation is underway as the Florida Highway Patrol gather all the known information in this case and attempt to work out whether or not any charges are due to the driver of the Toyota.
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.
