Florida Injury Lawyer Blawg
An elderly pickup truck driver faces charges after police accused him of driving drunk through a liquor store, causing an estimated $20,000 in damage over the weekend in Alachua County, Florida.
The driver was charged with driving under the influence, a first-degree misdemeanor, according to court records. The Florida Injury Lawyer Blawg will not be naming the man as he was not charged with a felony.
Police say they were called out following reports of the crash around sunset on Thursday, Jan. 30, to the liquor store, which is about a 70-mile drive southwest from Jacksonville. When they arrived, they found that the pickup truck had driven through the storefront. Officers conducted a field sobriety test which they say he performed “poorly” on before he was taken to jail.
Additional details, including whether there were any injuries, were not available on Monday.
Drunk Driving in Florida
In Florida, a driver with a blood alcohol concentration level (BAC) of 0.08% or above is considered to be impaired and is a violation of state law. For those driving commercial vehicles the legal BAC is lower at 0.04%. Per section §316.193 of the Florida Statutes, a first conviction carries penalties such as a fine of at least $500, but no more than $1,000, and possible jail time of up to six months.
A second conviction involves a fine of between $1,000 and $2,000 and/or up to nine months in jail. For a third conviction that occurs within 10 years of the second offense, penalties include a fine of between $2,000 and $5,000, mandatory imprisonment of at least 30 days and up to one year in jail. Fourth convictions are punishable by at least $2,000 in fines and/or up to five years in jail.
These numbers can differ depending on whether a minor was in the vehicle at the time or if there was a collision involving the injury or death of another person.
Leesfield & Partners
Leesfield & Partners is a personal injury law firm with offices throughout Florida in Orlando, Key West and Miami known for securing numerous record verdicts and settlements on behalf of injured clients. The firm, which has been recognized both statewide and nationally for its trial lawyers, represents clients in a myriad of personal injury practice areas such as medical malpractice, premises liability, negligent security and automobile crashes.
The firm has handled countless automobile injury cases throughout its 48 years in practice. In that time, Leesfield & Partners attorneys have developed a reputation for tenaciously pursuing the best possible outcome for injured clients, representing drivers, pedestrians, bicyclists alike.
Ira Leesfield, the firm’s Founder and Managing Partner, has regularly spoken about the dangers present on Florida roads such as distracted and impaired driving. He has previously partnered with safety organizations to raise awareness about these issues such as Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) and Friends of The Underline, which aims to promote pedestrian safety through the transformation of the previously unused land beneath Miami’s Metrorail.
In 2023, Mr. Leesfield was appointed to the Board of Directors for Friends of The Underline. Across the street from his firm’s Miami office on South Dixie Highway, Friends of The Underline have built a community gathering space dubbed The Leesfield Family Garden. The space will be a part of The Underline’s 11-mile linear park, connecting it to pedestrian pathways throughout the city, and will feature a sculpture garden and sitting area.
Previous Cases
The firm previously handled a crash case in which a drunk driver was speeding down the wrong side of I-95, resulting in a crash that caused irreparable damage to a family. The family in this case, represented by Leesfield & Partners, was heading to the airport to drop their 23-year-old daughter off so that she could travel to her medical school’s orientation. Their daughter was killed in the crash when the drunk driver hit them head-on. Their son, 21, who was also in the car, suffered serious injuries that left him unable to speak, wheelchair-bound and needing round-the-clock care.
The firm secured a verdict of over $95 million in that case for the drunk driver’s negligence and for the negligence of the establishments who overserved him.
Another case handled by the firm resulted in an over $36.9 million recovery amount following a fatal crash.
In the case of a 22-year-old handyman who suffered brain damage following a crash with a drunk driver, Leesfield &b Partners obtained a $15.4 million verdict. The client in that case was a backseat passenger in a car that was stopped at a drawbridge when a drunk and speeding driver hit the car from behind.
Injuries to the Leesfield & Partners client included skull fractures, frontal lobe damage and facial fractures. Our client, who worked in Fort Lauderdale as a handyman, developed a seizure disorder following the traumatic crash, making it impossible for him to continue in this line of work.
The firm handled another devastating crash case, this time involving three minors. The minors in this case were three teenage girls who were on their way to the library when a commercial truck driver made an illegal U-turn onto the turnpike, turning directly into their path. One of the girls was killed and the others sustained horrific injuries.
The firm obtained an $8.65 million settlement for the girls and a wrongful death arbitration award of over $7.9 million for the deceased girl’s family.
