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Pinellas man charged after officer, paramedics hurt at crash scene

Staff photo by CHRIS URSO

Police and paramedics were attending to a crash on U.S. 19 when another car ran into an officer's cruiser Monday night in Pinellas Park.

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TBO.com

Published: September 7, 2009

Updated: 09/08/2009 11:30 am

PINELLAS PARK - Police early today charged a driver involved in a crash that injured an officer and two paramedics Monday night on U.S. 19 in Pinellas Park.

Kevin Lee Chaney, 21, of 4927 39th Ave. N., Apt. 207, St. Petersburg, was arrested at 5:30 a.m. today and charged with driving under the influence, leaving the scene of a crash involving injury, driving with a suspended or revoked license, and reckless driving with property damage or injury.

Chaney was driving a 1996 Toyota southbound in the 10300 block of U.S. 19 about 10:20 p.m. Monday when he struck the back of a Pinellas Park police cruiser stopped on the side of the road, police said. Officer John Coleman and two paramedics were working a crash involving another car on a stretch of U.S. 19 that is under construction, authorities said.

"They were speeding," Kim Stern, a witness, said of the Toyota. "They hit so hard. … He was trying to get around the original car. He was swerving. It looked like something out of a movie."

Coleman and the two paramedics had heard the Toyota's tires squeal before the vehicle struck the rear corner of the squad car, said Capt. Sanfield Forseth. Coleman, who was standing in front of the squad car at the time, intentionally jumped on the hood of the squad car to avoid getting struck by the Toyota, Forseth said. The two paramedics, meanwhile, jumped over a concrete barrier on side of the road, to avoid getting struck, Forseth said.

A woman passenger in the original wreck under investigation – and who by now was on a gurney, so she could be placed in an ambulance – later told authorities she had been knocked off the gurney when the Toyota struck the squad car, Forseth said.

After Chaney's Toyota struck the squad car, it struck the car the woman had been in, and came to rest up against it, Forseth said.

Chaney claimed he was hurt and was taken to St. Anthony's Hospital in St. Petersburg. A woman passenger in his car refused medical treatment, Forseth said. Officer Coleman and the two paramedics were taken to Bayfront Medical Center. Coleman was treated and released. The conditions of the two paramedics were unknown.

The woman on the gurney, Deborah Daverese of St. Petersburg, was taken to Northside Hospital, Forseth said. Her husband, Neil, who was driving the car they were in, ended up at Northside, too, Forseth said. The couple's injuries were not life-threatening, police said.

The 2006 Chrysler four-door they were in had struck a barrier or other construction-related item on U.S. 19 before it stopped alongside the concrete barrier, Forseth said.

Chaney was told to stay at St. Anthony's, but by the time a Pinellas Park police officer arrived, he had bolted from the hospital, Forseth said. Several hours later he was tracked to a location in St. Petersburg, and a drunken-driving investigation was commenced.

Chaney had bloodshot and watery eyes and couldn't perform field sobriety tests; a breath test showed he had a blood-alcohol level of 0.219 and 0.217. The level at which a driver is presumed intoxicated in Florida is 0.08.

An investigation is continuing.

Reporter Stephen Thompson can be reached at (727) 451-2336.

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