Manatee County Man charged with leaving injured woman ♦ Wanted to avoid DUI ♦ FHP arrested him

BRADENTON – A Manatee County man told authorities he left a woman who fell off the back of his pickup because he didn’t want to get a DUI. The Florida Highway Patrol says a 54-year-old man was driving his truck Thursday night when a woman standing in the bed pounded on his cab.

When the driver of the truck turned to look, FHP says he swerved left, and the woman fell off. The driver of the truck told troopers he saw her fall, so he dropped his son off to check on her and drove home. The woman was taken by helicopter to a St. Petersburg hospital with serious injuries. When troopers questioned the driver of the truck, he told them he left because he feared getting a charge of driving under the influence.

The driver of the truck was arrested and charged with leaving the scene of an accident.