| Probable cause affidavit: |
SUBMITTED BY: PATTERSON, DEREK 0560 (AR12-3277) ON 102512 I WAS DISPATCHED TO THE WAL MART IN INVERNESS IN REFERENCE TO A HIT AND RUN ACCIDENT WITH INJURIES. WHILE EN ROUTE DISPATCH ADVISED THAT THE SUSPECT VEHICLE, A WHITE LINCOLN BEARING FLORIDA TAG L300LK, HAD PULLED OUT ONTO STATE ROAD 44 AND WAS HEADING WEST BOUND. UPON ARRIVAL IN THE WAL MART PARKING LOT I WAS FLAGGED DOWN BY THE PASSENGER THAT HAD BEEN IN THE VICTIM VEHICLE, MS EDITH SETTERS. MS SETTERS STATED THAT SHE HAD BEEN IN THE FRONT PASSENGER SEAT OF THE VICTIM VEHICLE WHICH HAD BEEN STOPPED AT THE RED LIGHT PREPARING TO EXIT WAL MART. AT THAT TIME A WHITE LINCOLN RAN INTO THE REAR OF THE VICTIM VEHICLE. MS SETTERS EXITED THE VEHICLE, AT WHICH TIME THE SUSPECT VEHICLE, THE WHITE LINCOLN, BEGAN TO REVERSE. MS SETTERS TOLD THE DRIVER OF THE LINCOLN, WHICH SHE DESCRIBED AS A YOUNGER WHITE FEMALE WITH BROWN HAIR THAT WAS UP IN A PONY TAIL, TO STOP, TO WHICH THE DRIVER REPLIED, âTHEREâS NO DAMAGEâ AND THEN ACCELERATED TOWARDS STATE ROAD 44. MS SETTERS THEN OBSERVED THE VEHICLE TURN WESTBOUND. MS SETTERS STATED THAT SOME WITNESSES HAD FOLLOWED THE SUSPECT VEHICLE ONTO STATE ROAD 44 AND THEN INTO THE WESTERN MOST ENTRANCE OF THE WALMART PARKING LOT. SHE CONTINUED THAT THE SUSPECT HAD PARKED IN A HANDICAPPED PARKING SPOT AND HAD FLED INTO WALMART. THIS INFORMATION WAS RELAYED TO DISPATCH AND OTHER UNITS ARRIVED ON SCENE TO ASSIST BOLO FOR THE SUSPECT. I ALSO MADE CONTACT WITH THE DRIVER OF THE VICTIM VEHICLE, MS LORETTA FALSETTI, WHO STATED THAT THE SUSPECT VEHICLE HAD STRUCK THE REAR OF HER VEHICLE AND THEN TOOK OFF. MS FALSETTI STATED THAT SHE HAD PREVIOUSLY BROKEN HER NECK AND THAT THE SUSPECT VEHICLE HAD STRUCK HER VEHICLE WITH SUCH FORCE THAT SHE HAD REINJURED HER NECK. SHE STATED THAT SHE WAS FEELING SWELLING IN HER NECK AND THAT SHE WAS IN SEVERE PAIN. AT THAT TIME EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES, AS WELL AS THE CITRUS COUNTY FIRE DEPARTMENT, ARRIVED ON SCENE TO TEND TO MS FALSETTI. AT THAT TIME A WINTESS, MR JASON NASTARI, PULLED UP TO THE INCIDENT SCENE. MR NASTARI STATED THAT HE HAD BEEN AT THE MURPHY GAS STATION PUMPING GAS WHEN HE HAD OBSERVED THE CRASH. HE STATED THAT HE OBSERVED THE SUSPECT VEHICLE REVERSE AND THEN DRIVE AROUND TRAFFIC TOWARDS STATE ROAD 44. HE THEN OBSERVED THE VEHICLE TURN WESTBOUND ONTO STATE ROAD 44, AT WHICH TIME HE GOT INTO HIS VEHICLE AND TRAVELED WEST THROUGH THE WAL MART PARKING LOT IN AN EFFORT TO FOLLOW THE SUSPECT. AS MR NASTARI PULLED TO THE INTERSECTION OF STATE ROAD 44 AND THE WESTERN-MOST ENTRANCE TO THE WAL MART PARKING LOT, HE OBSERVED THE SUSPECT VEHICLE QUICKLY RE-ENTER THE PARKING LOT THROUGH THAT ENTRANCE. MR NASTARI THEN MADE A U-TURN AND BEGAN TO FOLLOW THE SUSPECT VEHICLE, WHICH THEN RAPIDLY TURNED INTO THE PARKING LOT OF THE RUBY TUESDAY. MR NASTARI STATED THAT IN HIS OPINION THE SUSPECT VEHICLE WAS ATTEMPTING TO ELUDE HIM. THE SUSPECT VEHICLE THEN PULLED BACK OUT INTO THE PARKING LOT OF WAL MART AND ULTIMATELY PARKED IN A HANDICAPPED PARKING SPACE IN FRONT OF THE STORE. MR NASTARI TOLD THE DRIVER, WHOM HE DESCRIBED AS BEING A YOUNGER FEMALE WITH BROWN HAIR WEARING âPJ BOTTOMSâ, THAT THE POLICE WERE ON THEIR WAY AND THAT SHE NEEDED TO STOP. THE SUSPECT REPLIED THAT SHE KNEW THAT THE POLICE HAD BEEN CONTACTED BUT THAT SHE NEEDED TO GET HER CHILDRENâS MEDICATIONS FROM WALMART. SHE THEN âSPED WALKEDâ INTO WAL MART. A FEW MOMENTS LATER DEPUTY A. CANFIELD ADVISED DISPATCH THAT SHE HAD LOCATED THE SUSPECT VEHICLE PARKED IN THE HANDICAPPED PARKING SPOT IN FRONT OF THE STORE. SEVERAL MINUTES AFTER THAT DEPUTY A. CANFIELD ADVISED DISPATCH THAT SHE BELIEVED THAT SHE HAD LOCATED THE SUSPECT IN THE PARKING LOT. I THEN PROCEEDED TO DEPUTY A. CANFIELDâS LOCATION IN THE PARKING LOT WHERE DEPUTY A. CANFIELD PROVIDED ME WITH THE SUSPECTâS DRIVER LICENSE, AT WHICH TIME I IDENTIFIED HER AS KRISTIN BUZARD. I THEN RAN MS BUZARDâS DRIVER LICENSE THROUGH THE FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF HIGHWAY SAFETY AND MOTOR VEHICLES DATABASE WHICH INDICATED THAT MS BUZARDâS DRIVER LICENSE HAD RECENTLY BEEN SUSPENDED FOR FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY. I THEN PROCEEDED BACK TO THE INCIDENT LOCATION AND MADE CONTACT WITH MS SETTERS WHO CONFIRMED THAT SHE WOULD RECOGNIZE THE SUSPECT IF SHE WERE TO SEE HER. MS SETTERS THEN FOLLOWED ME BACK TO THE AREA WHERE DEPUTY A. CANFIELD HAD MS BUZARD DETAINED. UPON ARRIVAL AT THAT LOCATION MS SETTERS LOOKED AT MS BUZARD AND IMMEDIATELY IDENTIFIED HER AS BEING THE SUSPECT THAT HAD STRUCK THEIR VEHICLE. AT THAT TIME MS BUZARD YELLED TOWARDS MS SETTERS, âI TOLD YOU THAT I WOULD BE RIGHT BACK!â I THEN READ MS BUZARD HER MIRANDA WARNINGS VIA A PREPRINTED CARD, WHICH SHE STATED THAT SHE âKINDA UNDERSTOOD.â I THEN ASKED MS BUZARD IF SHE UNDERSTOOD HER RIGHTS, TO WHICH SHE REPLIED, âI DONâT HAVE TO TALK TO YOU WITHOUT A LAWYER IF I DONâT WANT TO?â I CONFIRMED THIS AND ASKED IF SHE DESIRED TO SPEAK WITH ME REGARDING THE INCIDENT, AT WHICH TIME SHE EXPLAINED THAT SHE WAS NOT RUNNING FROM THE SCENE, THAT SHE HAD GONE BACK INTO WAL MART TO GET HER CELLULAR PHONE. MS BUZARD CONFIRMED THAT SHE HAD ACCIDENTLY RAN INTO THE REAR OF THE VICTIM VEHICLE AND THAT THE DRIVER, MS FALSETTI HAD GOTTEN OUT OF THE DRIVER SIDE OF THE VEHICLE AND HAD TOLD HER, âYOU BROKE MY NECK AND IâM SUEING.â MS BUZARD STATED THAT SHE THEN WENT BACK INTO THE STORE TO GET HER CELLULAR PHONE SO THAT SHE COULD CALL HER SISTER. SHE STATED THAT SHE HAD NEVER INTENDED TO LEAVE THE SCENE OF THE CRASH. WHEN I INQUIRED ABOUT MS BUZARDâS DRIVER LICENSE SHE STATED THAT SHE HAD IN FACT RECEIVED A LETTER FROM THE STATE ADVISING HER THAT HER DRIVER LICENSE WAS SUSPENDED FOR FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY, BUT THAT SHE THOUGHT THAT WHEN SHE GOT INSURANCE THAT THE SUSPENSION WOULD AUTOMATICALLY BE LIFTED. MS BUZARD WAS THEN PLACED UNDER ARREST, WAS HANDCUFFED AND WAS PLACED INTO THE REAR OF MY PATROL CAR. AT THAT TIME DEPUTY A. CANFIELD EXPLAINED TO ME THAT ANOTHER WITNESS HAD FLAGGED HER DOWN IN FRONT OF THE STORE AND TOLD HER THAT THE SUSPECT HAD RAN INTO THE FAR WEST ENTRANCE TO WAL MART AND THEN RAN OUT OF THE EAST ENTRANCE INTO THE PARKING LOT. DEPUTY A. CANFIELD THEN OBSERVED THE SUSPECT IN THE PARKING LOT AND MADE CONTACT WITH HER. MS BUZARD WAS THEN TRANSPORTED TO THE CITRUS COUNTY JAIL WHERE SHE WAS CHARGED WITH LEAVING THE SCENE OF AN ACCIDENT WITH INJURIES AND WITH DRIVING WHILE HER LICENSE WAS SUSPENDED OR REVOKED WITH KNOWLEDGE. HER BOND WAS SET AT $2500.00 PER THE BOND SCHEDULE. ADDITIONALLY MS BUZARD WAS ISSUED UNIFORM TRAFFIC CITATION 9326GQFX FOR CARELESS DRIVING, 9327GQF1 FOR LEAVING THE SCENE OF AN ACCIDENT WITH INJURIES, 9328GQF2 FOR DRIVING WHILE HER LICENSE WAS SUSPENDED OR REVOKED WITH KNOWLEDGE, 9329GQF3 FOR NO PROOF OF INSURANCE, AND 9330GQF7 FOR IMPROPER PARKING IN A HANDICAPPED ZONE. |
