St. Petersburg Teenagers Steal Car, Three Die

At some point during either the night of Saturday or the early hours of Sunday morning, a sport utility vehicle parked in St. Petersburg was stolen by four teenagers.  The report from the St. Petersburg Police Department and the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office indicates that the vehicle was noted as being stolen shortly afterward, and the police began to search for the perpetrators.  At one point, the police found the car and attempted to pull it over, but the driver stepped hard on the gas and sped away. In an attempt to prevent a dangerous, high-speed chase, the police involved decided that chasing the vehicle would place the lives of the officers at risk and refrained from pursuing the vehicle.

At around 4:30 in the morning, the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office sent deputies to respond to reports of a crash in Pinellas County. When the responding officers and emergency vehicles arrived, they discovered the same car that, earlier in the night, had been reported as stolen and subsequently evaded capture during a traffic stop.  Although the statement given by the Pinellas County Sheriff, Bob Gualtieri, declined to provide reporters and the public with much information regarding the specifics of the crash, it seems that the accident took place well after the initial attempt to pull the car over was aborted.  During the interim, police hypothesize that the car began to travel at an incredibly high rate of its own volition.

During its race through the night, the car somehow became involved in a deadly and explosive crash.  Details about the crash itself are scant, however the authorities have acknowledged that three of the four teenagers died as a result of the crash.  The fourth teenager managed to survive and was taken to an unnamed hospital for treatment.  At the time of this writing, the condition of the fourth teenager is not known, however it is believed that he will recover from his initial injuries.

None of the names of the victims have been released, and the authorities have not issued any statement regarding what they believe to be the cause of the crash in the first place.

James O. Cunningham

Since 1977, personal injury lawyer James Cunningham has provided effective legal advocacy to people who are injured through the negligent actions of another person or entity throughout the Central Florida area. He fights to obtain recoveries for his clients’ physical and emotional pain and suffering and pursues his clients’ personal injury cases with a commitment to excellence and impeccable preparation.