Florida deputy killed in DUI crash, woman charged
NAPLES - A woman from Massachusetts was arrested Tuesday night after a crash that killed a Charlotte County Sheriff's deputy.
According to the Florida Highway Patrol, the 23-year-old deputy had pulled over a Honda in the northbound lanes of I-75, south of US-17, around 8:45 p.m. Both the Honda and the deputy's vehicle were on the paved shoulder of the road, and the deputy's lights were on. Both the deputy and the Honda driver were outside of their vehicles.
Cassandra Smith, 30, from Lakeville, Massachusetts, was driving north on I-75 when she lost control of her Jeep, crossed over lanes and went onto the paved shoulder. She hit the deputy's vehicle, which hit him, the driver of the Honda, and the Honda itself.
The deputy was taken to ShorePoint Health, where he later died. The driver of the Honda was also hospitalized.
Smith faces DUI manslaughter charges.