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Bollea's license suspended

Also, a video shows his mom saying she loves street racing and dodging cops.

By TAMARA EL-KHOURY, Times Staff Writer
Published November 21, 2007

ADVERTISEMENT Police say Nick Bollea was racing before the August crash. Related content Video: Nick's mom loved street racing Complete coverage: Stories, video and commentary on the case

In a double blow for the family of pro wrestler Hulk Hogan, son Nick Bollea's license has been suspended while a video emerged of Nick's mom talking about her enthusiasm for street racing.

"Oh, I love it," Linda Bollea tells the camera on Vehicular Lunatics, a 2005 documentary about street racing and fast cars.

"I love it," she added. "The rush, the speed on the road, stereo blasting, heart pounding, racing in between all the cars, dodging the cops. It's awesome."

Bollea's driver's license was suspended as a result of his involvement in an Aug. 26 crash that critically injured his friend and passenger, John Graziano. Bollea, 17, was charged with reckless driving with serious bodily injury in the wreck, and police say he was racing his Toyota Supra moments before the crash.

Bollea's license was suspended for six months as a result of a charge of being under 21 and having a blood alcohol level of 0.05 percent or higher on the day of the crash, said Ann Nucatola, state Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles spokeswoman, on Tuesday.

As of Dec. 10, Bollea's license will be suspended for a year as a result of a charge of reckless driving involving serious injury in the crash, Nucatola said. The charge carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison, although experts have said Bollea more likely would face probation.

Bollea also faces another suspension as of Dec. 11 for failing to pay a traffic fine in Osceola County for driving 106 mph in a 70 mph zone on April 25, Nucatola said. That suspension will be lifted when the fine is paid.

The street racing documentary was produced by IMV Films, based in Gainesville. Available in just four motor sports stores in the country, the DVD shows Nick Bollea's mother, Linda Bollea, driving a Mercedes S600 with her daughter, Brooke Bollea, in the passenger seat.

"Wanna race?" the video shows Brooke asking drivers in an unseen vehicle.

"Yeah. We love racing you. On three," a man's voice said.

The cars drive off. Later, Brooke Bollea is shown leaning out the window and yelling enthusiastically to the unseen drivers. One of the Bolleas shouts, "Our car is faster than yours!"

The brief interview during which Linda Bollea says she loves street racing takes place alongside an unidentified street.

This week, WFTS-Ch. 28 aired a report in which Linda Bollea denied making the comments. She did not return a call seeking comment Tuesday.

Morris "Sandy" Weinberg Jr., the Bolleas' attorney, said the clip has nothing to do with the state's case against Nick Bollea.

Savitar Charudattan, the director of IMV Films, said some of the video's scenes were recorded years before the documentary was released.

George Tragos, the attorney representing John Graziano's mother, Debra Graziano, agrees the video may not have anything to do with the criminal case against Nick Bollea.

But he said it is relevant in a civil suit against the family that hasn't been filed. Tragos said a civil suit "won't be filed until we know how many dollars it's going to take to take care of John for the rest of his life."

Graziano, an Iraq war veteran, is at the James A. Haley VA Medical Center in Tampa.

The video clip will be relevant to a jury in a civil case when it is determining negligence, Tragos said.

"It was very disturbing, and it reflects an atmosphere that Nick grew up in that certainly contributed, I think, to the incident on Aug. 26," Tragos said.

Tamara El-Khoury can be reached at tel-khoury@sptimes.com or 727 445-4181.

[Last modified November 21, 2007, 00:01:29]