Editor: On Nov. 10 at about 6:10 p.m., a horrific accident occurred on U.S. 41 (Broad Street) within the city limits of Brooksville. The accident took the lives of Benjamin P. Szulwach and his wife, Ruth Ilene Szulwach, as they returned to their car after celebrating Veterans Day at the Golden Corral Restaurant. Equally appalling was the fact that the driver of the vehicle who took their lives did not stop to render aid or assist. He ran from the scene, leaving those who witnessed the accident in shock and stunned.
As chief of police, I responded to the scene that night. I, too, was stunned. As we began our investigation into the accident, I called for assistance from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Florida Highway Patrol and the Hernando County Sheriff's Office. The one thing that was painfully clear that night was the limited amount of evidence we had to work with. The investigation leads that would be developed from witnesses raised as many questions as they provided answers.
We called for assistance from the greatest resource we have in this county - residents. With unwavering assistance from the newspapers, radio and television, the deaths of Mr. and Mrs. Szulwach were kept fresh in the minds of not only Hernando County residents, but the majority of the state. The calls started coming in by the dozens. The Brooksville Police Department's investigative staff had grown and now consisted of hundreds of eyes looking for the suspect vehicle.
While there are many things in the accident investigation that I cannot tell you, I can say that the information given to the press and the public resulted in the identification and the arrest of the subject charged in the hit-and-run accident.
It is my honor to thank each of you for your help and your involvement; it was your attentiveness and willingness to get involved that put this case together. I'm proud to serve you and this community.
-- Boyce Ed Tincher, Chief of Police, City of Brooksville
Kudos to another citrus grower
Editor: The recent Times story about Hernando County's citrus groves and sales was wonderfully informative and colorful. I'd like to recommend one additional local citrus grower from whom I purchased navels, and tangelos.
He's J.L. Napier, who will be 82 on Dec. 15, who served in World War II and who has spent a lifetime in the grocery business and handling produce here in Florida and in his home territory of Point Pleasant, W.Va., and Gallipolis, Ohio.
His small citrus operation is just a quarter-mile on the right east on Powell off U.S. 41. He'll regale you with great stories and he will educate you about each of the citrus products at his roadside stand. He is West Virginia friendly and a real storyteller in the West Virginian tradition.
-- Deron Mikal, Brooksville
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