Vontago Smith was on his way home the night of Sept. 13, walking along a dimly lit stretch of State Road 12 in Havana, when he got hit by a vehicle that seemed to come out of nowhere.
The driver, who didn’t have their headlights on, sped off after the crash, leaving Smith, 39, who works at Florida State University, to suffer in the middle of the highway.
Gadsden County Emergency Medical Services arrived at the scene, located not far from a Marathon gas station, and rushed Smith, who goes by “Tago,” to Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare, where he spent 28 days recovering.
His right leg was broken in four places, from his femur to his tibia, and his left ankle was broken, too, said his sister, Faye Williams of Atlanta. He had three blood transfusions and three surgeries and has another operation coming up this week.
“It’s really hard,” she said. “I really don’t believe he comprehends truly what has happened.”
According to the Florida Highway Patrol report, the crash happened shortly before 9 p.m. on State Road 12 near County Road 159 in Gadsden County.
An unknown vehicle traveling west struck Smith, who was in the middle of the road. FHP said the motorist “continued driving, leaving the scene of the crash.”
In a follow-up interview with FHP, Smith said he was trying to cross the road when he got hit. He couldn’t provide a description of the vehicle or the license plate because it was so dark.
“He only recalled the suspect vehicle not having its headlights on prior to the collision,” the report says.
FHP is continuing to investigate. The crash report says video from a nearby business didn’t capture the crash. It also notes two witnesses but doesn’t describe what they saw.
Williams wants to draw attention to her brother’s case in hope that someone will come forward with information that identifies the hit-and-run driver.
“You need to be accountable for just leaving the scene because you really actually left him to die,” she said.
‘His life will never be the same’
Smith, who lives off the highway with his mother and a brother, called home around 8 p.m. the night of the crash to say he was hungry and on his way home.
His mom offered to put a pizza in the oven, which would be ready by the time he arrived. But about an hour later, a state trooper called to say he’d been in a hit-and-run crash and was on his way to the emergency room.
Smith’s recovery has been slow and painful — and the crash itself knocked him out of his routine, including his job at FSU’s Suwannee Room, where he’s worked for the past 11 years.
Before the crash, he walked two miles to catch a bus to the campus dining hall, then another two miles as part of his return trip. He often stopped in the park in Havana to relax before coming home, always using caution along the busy roads.
“He’s extremely careful,” Williams said.
Smith, who is on the autism spectrum and has never driven a car before, has been using a wheel chair since the crash. Because his mom has her own health issues, he’s been staying with Williams, a truck driver, at a local hotel.
“Emotionally, I can see the sadness,” she said, “because he went from 100% active to like 30% active. He’s trying to get there. But it’s another setback with this surgery coming up.”
She said he misses work and keeps asking when he can go back.
“He never complains about anything,” she said. “He just says, ‘I’m alright,’ which is his go-to word.”
She said the driver may have panicked after hitting her brother or may have been intoxicated. Either way, she said, they should come forward to bring closure to Smith and his family.
“Because his life will never be the same at all,” she said. “He’s probably always going to have that picture in his head. I’m quite sure he’s not at peace, because he knows the driver is still out there.”
Anyone with information about the crash is asked to call FHP at Master Corporal Patricia Jefferson-Shaw at (850) 518-5748.
Contact Jeff Burlew at jburlew@tallahassee.com or 850-599-2180.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: ‘Left him to die’: Family of man struck in hit-and-run seeks answers
Reporting by Jeff Burlew, Tallahassee Democrat / Tallahassee Democrat
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
