The Florida Highway Patrol Traffic Homicide Unit arrested Ryan Richard Mowdy on Tuesday, July 21, in relation to a fatal traffic crash in Charlotte County on March 27 at Northbound Interstate 75 at Mile Marker 153.
Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) published a press release with the facts of the investigation. They determined that Mowdy, while driving under the influence of marijuana, drove a 2014 Jeep Wrangler across the Interstate 75 grass median and entered the direct path of a 2023 Hyundai Santa Fe, leading to the deaths of one adult and two children.
FHP reports that after the crash, Mowdy removed a small black container from the Jeep and threw it across a fence into a woodline. FHP later discovered the item and found it contained marijuana.
28-year-old Mowdy, from Laurel, New York, was arrested on three counts of DUI manslaughter, three counts of vehicular homicide, evidence destruction, and marijuana possession. He was booked into the Charlotte County Jail.
The crash remains under investigation.
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 16, there have been 188,110 crashes in Florida and 1,364 crash fatalities.
Charlotte County, where this crash occurred and just south of Sarasota County, has seen 1,413 crashes and 15 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: Florida I-75 crash that killed three leads to New York man’s arrest
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
