Golf carts have evolved from simple fairway cruisers into primary neighborhood transportation, especially in master-planned communities across the Sun Belt. But with that newfound street legality comes a harsh fact: traffic laws apply to these tiny electric and gas-powered vehicles just as strictly as they do to your daily driver. Unfortunately, one Florida man is learning that lesson the hard way after a disastrous joyride severely injured his wife.
A day of partying at the local club ended in a nightmare scenario for a North Port couple when a mix of alcohol and an open-air golf cart resulted in a devastating incident. It turns out you don’t need to be behind the wheel of a two-ton pickup truck to face severe criminal charge, or to put your loved ones in huge danger.
The North Port Joyride Gone Wrong
According to local arrest reports, 65-year-old James Prante was behind the wheel of his golf cart heading home after allegedly drinking at the club since noon. The situation took a turn when his wife was suddenly ejected from the moving cart.
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Without the safety of traditional seatbelts or a solid cabin, she struck the pavement and sustained severe head injuries, requiring her to be rushed to Sarasota Memorial Hospital for urgent medical care.
When responding officers arrived on the scene, they took note of the strong scent of alcohol and quickly discovered empty beer cans littering the inside of the golf cart. Prante was subjected to roadside sobriety tests, which he failed. Subsequent testing revealed a staggering blood alcohol concentration of 0.197 and 0.194, more than double the legal limit in the state of Florida…