Prosecutors defend decision not to charge official

Among the reasons for not accusing Wayne Brookins of hit and run: He returned to the site where he hit a pedestrian.

By JOSH ZIMMER

© St. Petersburg Times, published January 10, 2001

TAMPA -- The Dec. 15 collision shattered the front window of Solid Waste Director Wayne Brookins' city car, broke the driver's side mirror and a headlight and scuffed the bumper.

According to a police investigation released Tuesday, Brookins said he thought he hit a left turn signal sign on the well-lit street. Instead, he had run into 65-year-old Lydia Perez, a Tampa resident who remains in critical condition at St. Joseph's Hospital with broken bones and head injuries.

Based on Brookins' statement and accounts from witnesses who saw him drive away from the scene, police recommended bringing a felony hit-and-run charge against Brookins. But on Monday the state Attorney's Office cleared him of any possible wrongdoing.

The decision outraged Perez's family, and frustrated police. Although investigators blame Perez for carelessly crossing Spruce Street and causing the accident, they say Brookins should have stopped rather than leave the scene and return minutes later.

"The Police Department was prepared to arrest him and submit his case for trial," Sgt. M.D. Smith said Tuesday.

The state Attorney's Office defended its handling of the case, saying prosecutors unanimously concluded the case would be weak.

Although state statutes say a driver who hits a person or an object must "immediately stop," the language is open to interpretation, State Attorney's Office spokeswoman Pam Bondi said. Brookins, 56, drove away, but he redeemed himself by returning minutes later, she said.

"He wasn't speeding, there was no alcohol involved, he was at no fault in the accident," Bondi said. "He had no record, no driving record or criminal record. And again, he was at the scene minutes after it happened."

Brookins' position with the city did not matter, she said.

"It's our job not only to do the right thing, but also to treat all defendants alike," she said. "And that's what we did in this case."

Brookins has not returned phone calls seeking comment. His attorney, Richard Escobar, said the decision vindicates his client, who has led the Solid Waste Department since the early 1990s and is paid about $100,000 a year.

"It's very simple," Escobar said. "The facts did not amount to a violation of the law."

In the days after the accident, police contacted several witnesses who said Perez crossed in front of Brookins. But their accounts also depict Brookins as a careless driver who was going too fast and did not stop despite the loud impact and their efforts to get his attention.

Brookins told police he had gone to his Spruce Street office that Friday night after a week off work to check his calendar. He said that after noticing that a meeting of the Ybor City Development Corp. had been set for that Monday, he decided to head downtown in his city car to check on new garbage cans in that neighborhood.

According to Zoraida Diaz, she and Perez were crossing the street toward the Home Depot after dinner at the Denny's at the northwest intersection of Spruce Street and Dale Mabry Highway. When she reached the other side of the road, she said, she heard a thump and noticed Perez had been hit.

"He's not stopping!" she recalled screaming.

Julio Trejo told police he was pumping gas at the Amoco station on the southeast corner of the intersection when he saw Brookins run into Perez. Brookins did not stop after the collision, said Trejo, who ran over to the car as Brookins waited at the traffic light. Despite waving his arms and yelling as he made eye contact with Brookins, Trejo said, Brookins turned south on Dale Mabry.

About seven minutes later, Brookins arrived back at the scene, Trejo said. Between the time the first 911 call was received and the arrival of an officer, four minutes passed, the report said.

Police would later drive Brookins' route from Dale Mabry to West Laurel Street to North Church and Spruce. It took less than three minutes, the report said.

Brookins said he initially slowed to about 15 mph while trying to avoid a pedestrian crossing the street. Then he heard a "loud thump," he told police.

Thinking he had hit a sign, he said, he drove on without looking in the rear-view mirror. While traveling on Dale Mabry, he said, he noticed the extent of the damage and turned back to see what happened.

On the return route, he said, he was slowed by an ambulance. Once at the scene, Brookins admitted being involved in an accident, the report said. Police did not test him for alcohol or drug use.

According to the report, the impact shattered the left bottom corner of the windshield and spewed glass fragments on the dashboard. Brookins initially agreed to take a polygraph test, but on Dec. 22, his lawyer called to cancel, the report said.

Because he is not being charged, city officials said, the city will not conduct its own investigation into the accident.

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