“I want to say I’m so sorry to (the victim’s mother),” the man said after sentencing. After the accused made that statement, Judge Roger McDonald made an unusual request that stunned many in the courtroom—including the accused man’s mother.

“Mothers, come on up. Why don’t you embrace?” asked the judge, requesting the victim’s mother and the defendant’s mother to hug each other. “What I ask you to do, to embrace each other, not only as you just did, but I highly recommend you work together,” the judge added.

The judge exhorted the two mothers to work together to put an end to street racing. The defendant told the judge and others in the courtroom that he plans to fight illegal street racing when he gets out of prison. Then he faced the accident victim’s mother and said,

“I feel sorry for this nightmare I have created out of this. I feel horrible knowing I was the cause of death of (the deceased.)”

The victim’s mother responded to the apology saying, “To help another kid from getting hit, we will do it. We will welcome his family in and take whatever ideas we have so we can make it stronger and make this law go through.”

The accident occurred on June 14 and the defendant turned himself in to authorities three days later on June 17. Prosecutors in the auto accident case claimed that the defendant had tried to hide evidence by making a claim to his auto insurance company. While the victim’s family believed a charge of vehicular homicide would have been appropriate, the defendant pled guilty to the lesser charge of causing an accident that resulted in death. The defendant claimed that he did not see the victim walk out in front of his speeding car. He received a two-year prison sentence and five years of probation.

Anyone engaging in illegal street racing is operating their vehicle in a grossly negligent manner and putting the people around them at risk. Orlando pedestrian accident attorney James O. Cunningham has been helping pedestrian accident victims and their families obtain the financial compensation they deserve for well over 32 years. If you or a loved one incurred injuries or if a loved one died in a Central Florida pedestrian accident, call Orlando auto accident lawyer James O. Cunningham today.

"I hate to say it’s the worst I’ve seen in 30 years as a police officer, but it is," Holly Hill Police Chief Mark Barker said. "It looks like an IED (improvised explosive device) in Iraq went off. The car was completely split in half—the front end landed 30 feet from the back end of the car."

Emergency response personnel said that the bodies were so badly mangled that EMTs had to conduct a thorough examination to determine their gender. Accident investigators thought that the car involved in the accident was a Camaro Z28. They believed that the car was racing on Nova Road from Flomich Avenue south with another dark-colored car that didn’t stop when the Camaro driver lost control and hit a concrete barrier wall along the sidewalk in front of Classi Auto Body, 1820 N. Nova Road.

The speed of the wrecked car had not yet been determined by the police but they said that the car’s speedometer was stuck on 100 mph. The three victims were all ejected from the car in the crash.

A police spokesperson said, "One victim is still mangled in the wreckage. Young people who are involved with street racing should see what I’m looking at, and they’d think twice before (racing) again."

Racing on city streets is precisely the type of negligent, reckless behavior that results in tragedy for anyone unlucky enough to be nearby. It’s clear that the drivers of the racing vehicles were putting the lives of their passengers and anyone nearby at risk. Innocent people are injured and killed by irresponsible drivers every year and if you are injured in a Central Florida car accident caused by a reckless driver, Orlando car accident lawyer James Cunningham may be able to help.

James Cunningham has been assisting accident victims since 1977 collect the financial compensation they deserve to help with the medical and rehabilitative expenses of recovery. He protects the rights of people when they are least able to protect themselves from insurance companies and holds those responsible for causing the accident accountable for their actions. Call Orlando auto accident attorney James Cunningham for a free consultation if you or someone you care for has been injured in a car accident caused by a negligent driver.