A 41-year-old man is behind bars following a crash involving an ambulance. The Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office reports that William Lee Daniels has been arrested on three counts of DUI with Serious Bodily Injury, three counts of Reckless Driving with Serious Bodily Injury, and three counts of Fleeing & Eluding with Serious Bodily Injury.
Around 1 p.m. on May 28, Major Accident Investigation Team deputies arrested Daniels in connection to a serious injury crash at East Bay Drive and North Missouri Avenue on May 18. Around 2:44 a.m. on May 18, deputies stopped a 2014 BMW X1 allegedly driven by Daniels.
PCSO alleges that Daniels initially stopped but conducted a U-turn and fled at a high rate of speed. The deputy did not pursue the suspect vehicle. 25-year-old Derrick Gil was driving a 2014 Ford E350 Med Fleet Ambulance with a 70-year-old patient and 28-year-old medic Ashley Markel in the back.
Investigators say the ambulance was traveling at approximately 35 MPH near the intersection of East Bay Drive and North Missouri Avenue. The ambulance entered the intersection with a green signal. Daniels allegedly entered the intersection and hit the ambulance causing it to rotate and turn on its side.
The ambulance’s driver, Gil, suffered life-threatening injuries. The others suffered non-life-threatening injuries.
On May 28, 2024, deputies assigned to the Major Accident Investigation Team (MAIT) arrested 41-year-old Willie Lee Daniels in connection to the serious injury traffic crash at East Bay Drive and North Missouri Avenue on May 18th. Full release: https://t.co/sxfhvstxJr pic.twitter.com/S4BjtH5OvR
— Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office (@SheriffPinellas) May 29, 2024
Jay Skelton is an independent crime journalist with a passion for covering the uncovered and the under covered.