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Driver left paralyzed in January wreck is charged

His blood-alcohol level was twice the legal limit after he rear-ended a stopped tow truck, killing his passenger.

By Jacob H. Fries
Published March 17, 2006

A motorist who slammed into a tow truck in January, killing a 23-year-old Tarpon Springs man, was charged Thursday with DUI manslaughter, authorities said.

Tests after the Jan. 23 crash showed Richard J. Cadmus-Diaz's blood-alcohol level was 0.189 percent, twice the level at which state law presumes impairment, the Florida Highway Patrol said.

Cadmus-Diaz, 24, of Hudson was paralyzed in the wreck and is a patient at Bayfront Medical Center in St. Petersburg, troopers said. He was in good condition Thursday.

"This is a case where there are absolutely no winners," Trooper Larry Coggins said. "One family has buried a loved one, and the drunk driver will pay for this the rest of his life with his permanent injuries."

Cadmus-Diaz's passenger, Patrick A. Cooley, 23, died at the crash scene. He was a student at St. Petersburg College and a certified personal trainer. His father, Mike Cooley, is general manager of Crown Honda in Pinellas Park and president-elect of the Pinellas Park Chamber of Commerce. His family could not be reached on Thursday.

The highway patrol reported that the two men had been traveling north on U.S. 19 in Pasco County about 2 a.m. A northbound tow truck driven by Glenn G. Fasting, 30, of Holiday, was stopped at the light at the intersection with Sunray Drive.

Cadmus-Diaz smashed into the rear of the tow truck, Coggins said. He never applied the brakes.

"It never ceases to amaze me," Coggins said. "Every day we hear about a crash that kills someone, and yet people continue to drive drunk or get in a car with a drunk driver."

[Last modified March 17, 2006, 18:37:23]