Sunday, February 17, 2013
The Sarasota County Sheriff's Office and the Florida Highway Patrol said the new law, which requires international drivers to obtain a $25 permit to drive in Florida, could violate the Geneva Convention.
The Sarasota County Sheriff's Office and the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles have announced they are not going to enforce a new state law requiring international drivers to obtain a $25 driving permit to drive in Florida. The new law was suppose to go into effect on Jan. 1, but authorities fear the new law violates the Geneva Convention on road traffic. "Until this issue is resolved, deputies will only require that motorists have a valid driver license in their name from their country of residence or territory of the United States," the sheriff's office said in a statement released Thursday. The Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles also issued a statement Thursday afternoon: "During the 2012 …
Monday, February 11, 2013
The 40-year-old driver was hospitalized with serious injuries in the Monday morning crash that happened east of Proctor Road, authorities said.
A dump truck driver was seriously injured when he lost control of his vehicle and it overturned on State Road 72 in Sarasota, authorities said Monday. The man was headed west on 72, east of Proctor Road, around 10:45 a.m. Monday when his truck left the road and traveled onto the right shoulder, the Florida Highway Patrol reports. The driver, Jose L. Izquierdo, 40, of Pinellas Park, then steered left in an attempt to re-enter the roadway and lost control of the truck, causing it to overturn onto its passenger side, investigators said. The truck came to to rest in the westbound and right turn lanes of State Road 72. Izquierdo was taken to Doctor's Hospital with serious injuries, the FHP reports. Sign up for the Sarasota Patch email …
Friday, February 8, 2013
Investigators say the Bradenton woman lost control of her car at Braden Avenue near the Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport and struck a brick planter wall.
A Bradenton woman was seriously injured in a traffic crash on U.S. 41 at Braden Avenue, across from the Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport, after she lost control of her car Thursday night, the Florida Highway Patrol reports. According to investigators, the driver of a red Toyota was headed southbound on 41 around 10:53 p.m. when she spun out of control and struck a brick planter wall on the west shoulder. After striking the wall, the Toyota rolled back into the southbound lanes of 41. The driver of a Chevy Metro that had been following behind steered to the left, lost control and was hit in its left front side by a Pontiac Sunbird headed in the opposite direction. The driver of the Toyota, Leopoldine S. Simon of Bradenton, 27, was …
Friday, January 4, 2013
Driver of car struck by hit-and-run pickup also charged with driving on an expired license.
Florida Highway Patrol is looking for a older white pickup truck involved in a hit-and-run crash Friday morning in Sarasota. The truck was traveling westbound on 17th Street just west of Beneva Road around 11 a.m. Friday when for unknown reasons, the right side of the truck collided into a a 1996 Mercury Sable , according to Highway Patrol. The Sable crashed into the left side of a 2007 Chrysler PT Cruiser after the initial collision, according to Highway Patrol. Nobody was injured in the crash, but the driver of the Sable, Nancy Herrera, 47 of Hayesville, N.C., was charged for driving while her license expired for more than six months, according to Highway Patrol. Anyone who may have witnessed the crash or know the identity and/or …
Wednesday, December 26, 2012
The Florida Highway Patrol will conduct an overnight 'wolf pack operation' to get drunken drivers off the roads in Sarasota County.
Sarasota drivers may want to make a New Year's Eve resolution not to get behind the wheel after having even a few drinks. The Florida Highway Patrol, North District, plans an overnight "DUI Wolfpack Detail" in Sarasota County on Dec. 28. The operation will run from 10 p.m.-4 a.m. The aim is to get impaired and aggressive drivers off the road before they cause accidents and put lives at risk. "Troopers conducting the detail will be mobile while monitoring traffic in an effort to maximize their visibility and effectiveness in removing impaired drivers from the roadways in Sarasota County, Florida," according to a written statement from the FHP. In other words, state troopers will be out in force patroling Sarasota County, with an …
Friday, December 14, 2012
David Mahoney's SUV drove off the road crashing into a pile of rocks.
An 18-year-old Sarasota resident had died following a crash on Palmer Boulevard after 2 a.m. Friday. Florida Highway Patrol responded to Palmer Boulevard near Nandina Drive where a 1998 Toyota 4-Runner was found overturned on it's side facing a small creek bed at 2:20 a.m. The driver of the car, David M. Mahoney, 18 of Sarasota, was pronounced dead at the scene, according to Highway Patrol. The SUV apparently drifted across the eastbound lane then off the southwest corner of the intersection, traveled off the shoulder and struck a large group of rocks causing the SUV to overturn, according to Highway Patrol. It's unknown if alcohol was a factor, according to Highway Patrol.
Monday, December 10, 2012
The Sarasota County Schools bus carried 10 students at the time of the crash.
A Sarasota man is facing a careless driving charge after he struck a school bus that carried 10 students Monday afternoon. A Sarasota County Schools bus and a 2012 Dodge Ram 1500 were both westbound at 3:40 p.m. Monday on Gocio Road west of Ridgeview Drive when the bus stopped for other traffic in the road, according to Florida Highway Patrol. The driver of the Dodge, Logan Rogers, 24 of Sarasota, failed to stop in time and struck the rest of the 2008 Thomas bus driven by Gerald McArdle, 60 of Venice, according to Highway Patrol. Rogers was charged with careless drivers and the conditions of the students are unknown. Highway Patrol is withholding the students names because they're not sure if all parents have been contacted. McArdle …
Sunday, December 9, 2012
Florida Highway Patrol said Joseph Gaeta Jr. lost control of his Suzuki motorcycle while changing lanes.
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Sunday, December 9, 2012
A 54-year-old Sarasota motorcyclist is being treated for serious injuries following a crash on southbound Interstate 75 Sunday evening. Florida Highway Patrol responded to mile marker 213 near University Parkway at 5:58 p.m. Sunday for the crash where Joseph A. Gaeta Jr., was ejected from his 2001 Suzuki 1000 CC motorcycle from a crash. Gaeta traveled southbound on I-75 in the center lane, attempted to change to the left inside lane, failed to maintain control, overturned his motorcycle and was thrown onto the roadway, according to Highway Patrol, when the motorcycle traveled 285 feet before it came to a stop. Gaeta was transported to Blake Medical Center to be treated for his injuries.
Friday, December 7, 2012
Scott Parker,55, was hit by a suspected drunken driver who fled the scene and who shouldn't have been on the road driving anyway, according to Florida Highway Patrol.
A 55-year-old Sarasota man has died after a suspected drunken driver struck his car on Washington Boulevard early Friday. Florida Highway Patrol responded to U.S. 301 and 47th Street at 12:50 a.m. where Siosaia K. Fonua, 29 of Bradenton was driving a 1995 Mercury on northbound U.S. 301 and struck a 1999 Ford Mustang driven by Scott R. Parker, 55, of Sarasota at 47th Street. The Mercury struck the left side of the Mustang and Fonua fled on foot and was later located by law enforcement, according to Highway Patrol. Parker was pronounced dead at the scene, according to Highway Patrol. Fonua suffered minor injuries and was taken to Sarasota Memorial Hospital for his injuries and faces DUI Manslaughter, driving on a suspended license and …
Thursday, December 6, 2012
Florida Highway Patrol released its findings for the Oct. 5 mega crash on Interstate 75 at the Manatee-Sarasota County line that involved 53 vehicles.
Florida Highway Patrol investigators officially ruled Thursday that driver error and a sudden rain storm contributed to a 53-car crash Oct. 5 on Interstate 75. FHP issued 19 traffic citations for the mega crash that had 53 vehicles involved in 21 crashes where amazingly nobody was killed. Fifty two people were injured in the crash, 22 were sent to area hospitals and two were flown by helicopter from the scene for their injuries, according to Highway Patrol. The crash occurred near the University Parkway exit, prompting the closure of I-75 for six hours. Highway Patrol said driver error was chiefly to blame for the crash and that the inclement weather contributed to the crash. While fortunately nobody was killed, Florida has the second most…
ed taylor
4:59 pm on Sunday, February 17, 2013
In various stories about this issue I've yet to read the burning issue as to why the Legislature passed this unreasonable, burdensome regulation (other than the blatantly obvious: a cash grab). Not beyond reason for Canada and/or the EU to mandate U.S. citizens obtain same. What a hassle that would be. Did anyone not think - or raise the subject - of ramifications? Don't answer that, we know the … more ›