Another fatality has teen at wheel

No charges have been filed after a 16-year-old loses control and hits a man on scooter.

By REBECCA CATALANELLO, RODNEY THRASH and LETITIA STEIN, Times Staff Writers
Published September 27, 2007

ADVERTISEMENT [Daniel Wallace | Times] Investigators from the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office collect evidence from a black convertible Nissan 350z on the bank of a retention pond off Countryway Boulevard just south of Woodbay Drive on Wednesday, after a fatal crash involving the Nissan colliding with a scooter. Related content Raquel Carreras: Risky ride, familiar end (Sept. 18) Nick Bollea: Under the radar no more (Sept. 14)

TAMPA - An Alonso High student lost control of his car and crashed into a scooter, killing the driver, then plunged into a pond Wednesday, sheriff's deputies said.

Sophomore driver John Holland Jr. and his passenger Trevor Ekovich, both 16, escaped the submerged car uninjured.

But not far away from the skid marks showing the car's path, a man lay unresponsive in the middle of Countryway Boulevard near Woodbay Drive, according to one witness. Deputies did not release the victim's name pending notification of his next of kin.

The crash is the latest in a string of fatal accidents in the Tampa Bay area involving teen drivers.

Deputies said Holland was northbound in a 2005 Nissan 350Z when the car veered across the center lane into oncoming traffic, striking the oncoming southbound scooter.

Though no charges had been filed in the 3:17 p.m. collision as investigators pieced together what happened, the accident quickly prompted school officials and parents to voice concern over teen driving safety.

"I'm nervous as a parent with today's drivers and a lot of kids don't take this as seriously as they could," said Michelle Mayfield, president of the Alonso PTSA, who came upon the accident about 10 minutes after it occurred.

By now, the names of the young dead are stacking up: 14-year-old Raquel Carreras of St. Petersburg died Sept. 15 after a car loaded with five others under 15 lost control; 17-year-old Matthew Laidley of Wesley Chapel died on Aug. 29, his two friends seriously injured; 17-year-old driver Tyler Clark of Valrico died Oct. 8 after his Jeep carrying seven others bumped a median and spun out of control, injuring the others.

Other names and dates in recent memory:

- Oct. 13: Charlotte Marie Hoffman's Ford Mustang flew off a curve, hit a tree and broke in two pieces, killing Callie Lynn Roberts, her 16-year-old passenger. Hoffman of Ruskin was 18.

- Oct. 18: Andrew Leight, 16, driving his father's truck in Gibsonton, clipped 15-year-old Fredrick Gardner's bike, killing Fredrick.

- Feb. 27: Lindsey Rutledge, 16, died in Valrico after she stepped into the path of a car driven by Zachary Carroll, 16. No charges have been filed.

And Hulk Hogan's 17-year-old son, Nick Bollea, is in the center of a high-profile case as Clearwater police investigate his Aug. 26 collision, which critically injured his passenger, 22-year-old John Graziano.

An estimated 702 crashes occur on Florida roads every day, most frequently involving drivers 15 to 19.

Stephen Hegarty, spokesman for Hillsborough County schools, said the problem has become so urgent that superintendent MaryEllen Elia has made it a part of town hall meetings. She has one at 7 tonight at Jefferson High School.

Elia frequently requests that officers station themselves around campuses to police teen drivers, Hegarty said.

"We have had too many tragedies," he said. "All you can do is stress it over and over again."

At the Holland household Wednesday evening, a weary-looking woman answered the door. She said "We're very, very upset," but declined to speak further.

At the Ekovich house, a man curtly declined as well. Two teenage boys sat outside on the driveway in this upper middle-class neighborhood with its large, beautiful homes in beige and brown, looking glum and worried about their friend.

Hegarty said Alonso administrators would be monitoring whether the situation called for crisis counseling at the school. The campus is a little more than 2 miles southeast of the site of the fatal accident.

"I don't know if this student is at fault," Hegarty said, "but just to be involved in something like this would be a life-altering experience."

Rebecca Catalanello can be reached at 813 226-3383 or rcatalanello@sptimes.com Times researcher John Martin contributed to this report.

[Last modified September 27, 2007, 00:32:49]