Woman, 87, dies in crash; daughter, 61, injured

Times staff writer

© St. Petersburg Times, published March 12, 2000

CLEARWATER -- An 87-year-woman was killed and her 61-year-old daughter was critically injured Saturday when the older woman accidentally pulled in front of an oncoming car on Gulf-to-Bay Boulevard, police said.

The two cars collided about 11:30 a.m. near Crest Lake Park, at Gulf-to-Bay's intersection with Lake Avenue. Clearwater police said Eugenia Sargent, who lived at 2855 Gulf-to-Bay, was killed. Her daughter, Jean Miller of Winter Haven, was in town visiting her mother and was riding in the front passenger seat of Sargent's car. Clearwater paramedics had to extricate Miller from the heavily damaged car. She was flown by helicopter to St. Joseph's Hospital in Tampa, where she was in critical condition Saturday night.

Traffic homicide investigators said Sargent was on Gulf-to-Bay when she tried to turn left onto Lake Avenue, pulling into the path of a car that had the right of way.

The driver of that car -- Floriberto Pena, 18, of 235 Kings Highway, Clearwater -- was taken to Morton Plant Hospital, where he was treated and released.

Clearwater man charged in butcher knife attack

CLEARWATER -- A Clearwater man was charged with attempted murder Friday after he stabbed another man during an argument about 8:30 p.m., police said.

According to police, Richard Bruce McGee, 34, and William Boyce Shaw, 29, got into an argument at the Hillcrest Motel, 26 Hillcrest Ave. S. Police said McGee stabbed Shaw in the abdomen with a butcher knife. Shaw went to his car and drove away, but stopped nearby on Court Street when he began to feel faint.

He was found there by police and taken by helicopter to Bayfront Medical Center in St. Petersburg. He underwent surgery and was expected to recover, police spokesman Wayne Shelor said.

McGee was arrested later. He was held without bail in the Pinellas County Jail.

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