Citrus County

June 20, 2023

News: Rollover car wreck in Citrus County leaves 1 dead, 3 injured

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

CITRUS COUNTY, FL – A teenage driver was killed and three other people were injured when their vehicle crashed in Citrus County on Saturday afternoon, according to WTVT.

The accident happened on West Fort Island Trail west of North Seabreeze Point. The Florida Highway Patrol said a 16-year-old boy was driving a Jeep Cherokee eastbound with three passengers when he lost control of the vehicle while going along a curve. The Jeep went off the roadway and overturned multiple times.

The driver and his 7-year-old brother were both thrown from the SUV. The driver was pronounced dead at the scene while the young boy was seriously injured.

April 18, 2023

News: Bicyclist struck by hit-and-run driver in Citrus County

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

CITRUS COUNTY, FL – A bicyclist was injured after being struck by a hit-and-run driver in Citrus County Friday night, WFLA reports.

The Florida Highway Patrol said a 49-year-old man was riding his bicycle on West Grover Cleveland Boulevard at about 10:25 p.m. when he was hit by an eastbound sedan. The victim, a Homosassa resident, was seriously injured and airlifted to an area hospital.

State troopers said the driver of the sedan kept going after the collision without stopping to help, and is now being sought. The bicyclist, who was not wearing a helmet at the time, did have a light on his bike.

November 23, 2022

News: 4-year-old boy injured when sedan hits ATV on County Road 490

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

CITRUS COUNTY, FL – A collision involving a sedan and an ATV in Citrus County sent a young boy to the hospital, the Citrus County Chronicle reports.

The accident occurred Saturday night as both vehicles were headed south on County Road 490 near South Bolton Avenue at about 9:40 p.m. The Florida Highway Patrol said the driver of the sedan, a 49-year-old man, was not able to see the ATV because it had no lights and crashed into the back of the vehicle. The sedan driver then lost control and went off the road before hitting a tree.

A 4-year-old Homosassa boy who was in the second row of the ATV was flown to St. Joseph Children’s Hospital in the Tampa area with undisclosed injuries. The two drivers and three other passengers in the ATV, two women and a teenage girl, were not injured in the crash.

September 16, 2022

News: 2 injured in multi-vehicle collision involving Citrus County school bus

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

CITRUS COUNTY, FL – Two people were hospitalized Wednesday afternoon after a multi-vehicle accident involving a school bus in Citrus County, the Citrus County Chronicle reports.

The incident happened along North Dunkenfield Avenue near the intersection with North Marion May at about 3:08 p.m. According to the Florida Highway Patrol, a Chevrolet HHR was stopped in the northbound lane of North Dunkenfield at about the same time a Citrus County School District bus had stopped to make a turn at the intersection.

The FHP said the driver of a Dodge Caravan did not see that the Chevrolet had stopped in front of him and rear-ended the vehicle, causing it to hit the left side of the bus as it was turning.

September 8, 2022

News: Man killed when SUV collides with tree, overturns in Crystal River

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

CRYSTAL RIVER, FL – An accident in Citrus County involving a sport utility vehicle left a driver dead, the Florida Highway Patrol said.

According to WFLA, the wreck happened in Crystal River Wednesday morning at about 1:30 a.m. State troopers said a 33-year-old man was driving an SUV west on Fort Island Trail and was not able to negotiate a curve in the roadway near North Seabreeze Point.

The SUV went off the roadway, struck a tree and overturned. The driver, a Lecanto resident, was pronounced dead at the scene.

August 17, 2022

News: Man pleads no contest in car crash near Inverness that left 3 dead

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

CITRUS COUNTY, FL – The driver charged in a car accident that killed three people in Citrus County has pleaded no contest in the case, according to a report by the Citrus County Chronicle.

56-year-old Phillip Sawhill of Land O’Lakes will be sentenced Oct. 4 on three counts of second-degree vehicular homicide.

The crash took place Dec. 24, 2019 near the intersection of South Pleasant Grove Road and East Amy Lane near Inverness. Authorities said Sawhill was driving a Toyota Highlander and trying to pass five other northbound vehicles in a no-passing zone on South Pleasant Grove Road. His vehicle collided with a Kia Optima that was headed south. Three people in the Kia, ages 86, 85 and 62, were pronounced dead at the scene.

July 25, 2022

News: Driver arrested on DUI charge following 4-vehicle crash in Citrus County

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

CITRUS COUNTY, FL – A driver involved in a crash in Citrus County was arrested after authorities said he drove while impaired.

According to the Citrus County Chronicle, 29-year-old Aaron Michael Walnum of Homosassa was taken into custody and booked into county jail on a misdemeanor charge of DUI involving property damage.

The accident happened July 17 at the intersection of West Norvell Bryant Highway and Pine Ridge Boulevard. The Florida Highway Patrol said Walnum’s car struck the back of another vehicle, causing a collision that involved two additional vehicles.

July 14, 2022

News: Pickup trucks involved in fatal collision after driver runs red light on U.S. 19

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

CITRUS COUNTY, FL – The Florida Highway Patrol said two pickup trucks were involved in a fatal collision in Citrus County on Monday afternoon.

According to a report by Ocala-News, the incident occurred on U.S. 19 near W Dunnellon Road at about 3 p.m.

The FHP said a 47-year-old man was driving a pickup truck northbound and went through a red light at the intersection. The vehicle collided with the side of another pickup that was making a left turn under a green traffic signal.

June 30, 2022

News: Man, woman injured in collision between motorcycles on U.S. 19

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

CITRUS COUNTY, FL – Two people were injured in a collision involving two motorcycles in Citrus County on Sunday morning, state troopers said.

According to the Citrus Chronicle, the crash occurred on U.S. 19 near West Ponce De Leon Boulevard near the Hernando County border at about 11:35 a.m.

The Florida Highway Patrol said a man driving northbound on a Spyder motorcycle veered between lanes before crashing into the back of a Harley Davidson Tristar motorcycle also going north, causing the Spyder to overturn. Witnesses had seen the Spyder driver trying to avoid debris in the roadway.

June 14, 2022

News: 2 injured when suspected drunk driver hits motorcycle in Citrus County

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

INVERNESS, FL – State troopers said a suspected drunk driver was involved in an accident in Citrus County that injured two people, WTVT reports.

The two victims were on a motorcycle on US 41 in Inverness Saturday night when the crash occurred near East Tower Road at about 10:40 p.m.

The Florida Highway Patrol said a man driving under the influence was attempting to make a left turn into a parking lot from the highway when he entered the path of the motorcycle. The vehicles collided and a 37-year-old man and 35-year-old woman were thrown from the motorcycle onto the roadway. Both were seriously injured.