Spring Hill motorcyclist remembered for strength, sensitivity

Henry McCain would have known what to do in this situation.

A long-time funeral director, he counseled thousands of people when they were at their most vulnerable.

When his friends and co-workers at Dobies Funeral Home learned of his death Tuesday, they had difficulty accepting the news, said owner Tom Dobies.

"In this business you have to be strong for the families," he said. "You're sensitive, but in a way you're detached. When it happens to someone you care about, it can still be very difficult."

McCain, 66, of Spring Hill, was killed on his motorcycle Tuesday morning. He was making a right turn from County Line Road onto U.S. 19 when a Dodge Ram traveling north along the highway ran a red light and plowed into him and his 2009 Suzuki, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.

The driver of the Suzuki, Brittany Miles, 21, had been pulled over by a Pasco County deputy in Hudson on suspicion of reckless driving, but managed to drive away while handcuffed, dragging a Pasco County deputy across three lanes of traffic, before hitting McCain.

McCain leaves behind a wife and two grown children.

Miles, of 4550 Bridgewater Club Loop in Spring Hill, was present for her first court appearance Wednesday.

Hernando County Judge Donald Scaglioni ordered Miles will remain in jail without bail.

Miles was unemotional during the hearing. The daughter of a Hernando County Sheriff's deputy and graduate of Central High School, told the judge she plans to hire an attorney.

Miles escaped the custody of a Pasco deputy during a traffic stop shortly after 7 a.m. Tuesday at the corner of U.S. 19 and Florestate Drive, authorities said.

Pasco Deputy Ashley Grady, who has been with the sheriff's office since July, told investigators that she was in the front seat writing an arrest affidavit when Miles escaped from the backseat, got into her truck and drove off.

"Deputy Grady jumped in the window to try and stop her," Pasco sheriff's office spokesman Kevin Doll said. "She gave verbal commands, while trying to grab the keys. She rapidly accelerated out of the parking lot (of Whitney & Sons Seafood) at a high rate of speed onto U.S. 19 – with Deputy Grady half inside the cab. The defendant got up to 70 mph on (U.S.) 19; she removed the deputy's hands from the cab, and (Grady) fell out onto U.S. 19.

"She went across three lanes of 19, hit the median and that's when Grady fell into the southbound lanes."

Doll said he didn't know if Miles was handcuffed behind her back or in front.

"Sometimes they can be handcuffed from behind and still get (the handcuffs) to the front, but I don't know if that happened here," he said.

Suspects typically are handcuffed from behind, however they can be handcuffed in the front if they are too fat or too muscular, or if the suspect has arm or shoulder problems that prevents handcuffing from behind.

Doll said it was unclear if the rear door of the cruiser was locked, or if the window was down. An Internal Affairs investigation should answer those questions, but it could take weeks before the investigation is complete, he said.

Grady suffered a broken ankle and tibia and head lacerations, Doll said. He would not say whether she remained hospitalized.

Doll said a tow truck driver was at the scene and was preparing to remove the pickup from the side of the highway when Miles darted out of the patrol car and got away.

"He watched the whole thing unfold," Doll said of the tow truck driver.

Rick Merrill is the co-owner of Altitude Adjustments, a tire and alignment shop at the end of the access road where Grady had pulled over Miles.

Merrill pointed to the parking lot where the Bayflite helicopter landed to take Grady to a Tampa hospital. He didn't know the patient was a deputy until they wheeled her out of the ambulance and into the helicopter, and he noticed the green uniform.

The tire marks along the grass near where the truck reentered the highway were still visible Wednesday morning.

"I can't imagine how she shot into three lanes of traffic and nobody hit her," Merrill said.

•Miles sped north along U.S. 19 and was followed by Pasco Deputy Christopher Greifenberger, who had joined Grady at the traffic stop, Doll said.

Other deputies joined Greifenberger during the eight-mile chase into Spring Hill.

Miles ran a red light at the County Line Road intersection, at which time she slammed into McCain's motorcycle, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.

The collision caused Miles' truck tires to go flat. She continued driving north before stopping a short distance south of Spring Hill Drive, troopers said.

She got out of the truck and ran a short distance before deputies apprehended her, according to the sheriff's office.

Doll said witnesses reported seeing Miles with the handcuffs dangling off one wrist as she was taken into custody.

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McCain's family and friends are still recovering from the shock of his death.

His family has declined to speak to the media.

Employees will remember McCain's strength and even-keeled demeanor, which Dobies said was perfect for someone in the funeral business.

"He had a soft mannerism," he said. "He was very good with families. He never got riled."

Dobies said he tried to talk McCain out of continuing his motorcycle hobby. His wife tried to do the same.

"I told him, 'You need to get rid of that damn motorcycle' and he would just say, 'Well, I've got to die sometime.'"

Dobies said he visited the crash site Tuesday and was shaken by the conjured image of his friend lying in the road. He woke up early the next morning in a fog.

"I kept thinking, 'Did this really happen? Did this really occur?'" Dobies said. "You're doubting yourself. You feel like you're dreaming."

Later Wednesday, Miles stood between two female deputies as the judge spoke ominously about her future.

"Several of the charges you're facing life imprisonment and possibly the death penalty on," Scaglioni told Miles.

Among the charges against her are first-degree murder, fleeing to elude, escape and attempted murder on a law enforcement officer. The murder charge will be prosecuted in Hernando and the others in Pasco, said Hernando County Assistant State Attorney Shannon Laviano, who was present for Miles' hearing Wednesday.

Bill Catto handles vehicular homicide cases for Hernando and Pete Magrino handles first-degree murder cases. It wasn't decided who was handling the case going forward, but at least two people at the State Attorney's Office said Magrino likely will be the assigned prosecutor.

In April, Miles was arrested in Pasco on a charge of possession of methamphetamine.

Scaglioni told Miles she will need to contact her attorney in her Pasco case "because you're probably not going anywhere, and you're probably going to miss your court dates down there."