Teenager charged with involuntary manslaughter and vehicular homicide for drunk driving in death of couple

Lina Portman4 weeks ago

3 2 minutes read

A 17-year-old boy was taken into custody Tuesday, with law enforcement charging him with two counts of drunken driving manslaughter, two counts of vehicular homicide and three counts drunk driving with property damage.

The teen is being held without bail at the county jail. The juvenile's attorneys are Stewart Hyman of Orlando and local defense attorney Bill Ramputi.

Ramputi told a reporter that he accompanied the teenager to the lockup because there was a warrant for his arrest. The lawyer said the case was new and they had not had a chance to see the evidence against their client.

As he is a minor, Star-Banner has decided not to release his name.

Prosecutors said the child is currently being charged as a juvenile and they plan to charge him as an adult.

Death of couple

The accident for which the minor is accused occurred on February 20 along 36th Avenue Southeast. He killed Spencer, 30, and Samantha Holden, 35, a married couple, both from Ocala.

According to the report from Ocala Police Department Officer William Joedicke, officers were called to a crash in the 1300 block of 36th Avenue involving two vehicles.

When Officer Steven Kelly arrived, he noticed a Mazda had what was observed to be significant damage to the rear that appeared to have been hit from behind. A woman, later identified as Samantha Holden, was trapped inside the vehicle and died. Her husband was thrown from the car onto the roadway and died at the scene, police officials said.

The officer also saw a Mercedes sport utility vehicle that was damaged. The Mazda, which was in the southbound outside lane, was on fire, according to Joedicke's report.

While examining the scene, officers found a groove mark in the southbound outbound lane of 36th Avenue, a broken light pole and tire marks from the SUV where authorities believed it crossed from a way to the other.

To the hospital

Detective Steven Daunhauer spoke with witnesses to the accident. A witness described seeing the headlights of the Mazda knocked over, a ball of fire at the point of impact with the Mercedes.

A nearby resident told the detective he heard a loud noise. The resident saw the Mercedes and the teenager behind the wheel.

Daunhauer went to UF Health Shands Hospital in Gainesville to speak to medical staff. There, the detective heard a nurse arguing with the boy who was trying to leave the facility.

A search warrant for a sample of the teen's blood was issued so it could be analyzed by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, police officials said. Blood was obtained after several hours and showed the boy's blood alcohol level was 0.084, which is above the state's legal limit of 0.08. Authorities obtained a search warrant for the teen's blood drawn by hospital staff during his admission. It showed his blood alcohol level was 0.188 and 0.189.

Video from Ward-Highlands Elementary School showed both vehicles traveling southbound on 36th Avenue and the Mercedes speeding.

Excessive speed

Two Florida Highway Patrol traffic homicide investigators went to OPD, where they received information about the Mercedes.

Police told officers the luxury vehicle was traveling at 125 mph five seconds before the collision with 100 percent acceleration without braking. The SUV's speed increased to 200 km/h, still at 100% acceleration at the moment of impact. The speed limit on the roadway is 40 mph.

Death of couple

Lina Portman

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