A Belleview woman has been charged with DUI manslaughter in connection with a single-vehicle crash that claimed the life of a 27-year-old passenger earlier this month.
Early in the morning on Saturday, August 16, a Florida Highway Patrol trooper responded to State Road 35 in Belleview, near the intersection of SE 102nd Place Road, in reference to an accident involving a fatality. Upon arrival, the trooper observed a blue Nissan Altima on the west shoulder that had sustained damage to its passenger side, according to the arrest report.
The trooper noted in the report that a fence to a nearby cemetery was damaged from the single-vehicle crash, and scrape/gouge marks were visible on a tree that the Nissan had struck prior to coming to a final rest.
Inside the Nissan, the trooper observed “six cans of Coors Light” on the “passenger front floorboard.” The report stated that the interior of the vehicle also “smelled of an alcoholic beverage,” which led the trooper to believe that the driver may be “under the influence.”…