A Bradenton man was arrested for DUI manslaughter after striking and killing a Florida Road Ranger with his vehicle on Sunday, July 12.
A Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) press release states that Florida Department of Transportation Road Rangers responded to a two-vehicle crash on I-75 near the 274 Milepost in Pasco County to provide traffic assistance.
FHP says that shortly after the Road Rangers’ arrival, an Acura MDX drove between the two Road Ranger vehicles and struck one of the Road Rangers, who was actively setting a lane closure.
FHP reports that the Road Ranger, a 24-year-old man from Brandon, suffered fatal injuries at the scene of the crash.
FHP identified the driver as Darren Christopher Jenkins, 40, of Bradenton. He was later arrested by FHP Troopers for DUI manslaughter after providing a breath sample that measured 0.334, more than four times Florida’s legal limit of 0.08.
FHP reports that Jenkins was delivered to the Pasco County Jail.
Florida’s 2026 crash statistics
Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles uses a Crash Dashboard to track crash statistics in the state. As of July 9, there have been 181,780 crashes in Florida and 1,310 fatalities from crashes.
Pasco County, where this crash occurred, has had 3,306 crashes and 38 crash fatalities.
Michaela Galligan is an intern covering a variety of topics for the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. She can be reached at MGalligan@usatodayco.com. Support local journalism by subscribing.
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Bradenton man arrested after fatal DUI crash kills Road Ranger
Reporting by Michaela Galligan, Sarasota Herald-Tribune / Sarasota Herald-Tribune
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Michaela Galligan, Sarasota Herald-Tribune | USA TODAY Network
