Lack of leads in hit-and-run death disappoints investigator

Neil Smith didn't have a car. Friends say he didn't even have a driver's license.

Instead, he'd ride his bike all over St. Petersburg.

"I'd pass him on Gandy many times on his bike," said David Rupp, a manager at the Crab Shack restaurant where Smith worked for 10 years.

According to St. Petersburg police, Smith finished his shift as a dishwasher at 10:30 the night of Sept. 12. As usual, he got on his bike to ride the three miles home to the Hollywood Mobile Home Park, where he lived.

Rupp said Smith's bike was brand new, not even a week old. He had bright, LED lights on the front and back of the bike.

He'd almost made it home when someone rear-ended him at 7300 4th St. N., right in front of the St. Petersburg Dental Center.

Traffic investigator Michael Jockers said Smith obeyed all the rules of the road.

"He was in full compliance with the law. He had lights, he had reflectors, he was riding against the curb," said Jockers.

The force of the crash threw Smith into grass on the side of the road. He then tumbled several times, hitting his head at the base of a light pole. Smith's spinal cord was severed, Jockers said.

Jockers said Smith's heart stopped on the way to the hospital, but paramedics revived him, and he survived another six days. He died Saturday at Bayfront Medical Center.

The person who hit Smith didn't stop. Instead, Jockers said, the driver sped up and drove off after the crash. All investigators found were several white paint chips on the side of the road. The only two witnesses describe the car as a mid '90's Ford Taurus or Mercury Sable.

Jockers said the paint chips wouldn't help them narrow down their search.

"Unfortunately this isn't 'CSI,'" he said. "If we were to send this off, the best that we would get, we may be able to determine what manufacturer this was."

Jockers thinks the vehicle involved would have damage to the right front bumper, and possibly the hood and fender. He also thinks someone out there is hiding information about that night. He's disappointed no one has come forward.

"For the first time in 10 years of doing traffic homicide investigations, we've gotten two phone calls and two phone calls only," Jockers said.

At the Crab Shack, David Rupp described Smith as a man of few words.

"He was a quiet guy. He was easy to be around, just did his job," he said.

Rupp hopes someone speaks up to help solve Smith's case.