Truck driver sought in fatal I-275 accident

The Florida Highway Patrol is asking for your help determining the identity of a driver pulling a utility trailer involved in a fatal accident on the Howard Frankland Bridge Monday afternoon.

Just after 4 p.m., Jason A. Kent, 28, of St. Petersburg was riding a motorcycle southbound on the bridge just north of the center span when he switched from the inside-center to the outside-center lane, according to a police report.

The front tire on Kent's 2005 Victory motorcycle struck the rear tire of a utility trailer, troopers said, causing Kent to lose control and fly off the bike.

Lying on the road, Kent was then struck by an oncoming 2002 Winnebago motor home, driven by Luann Borrison, 54, of Camanche, Iowa, according to the report. Borrison remained on the scene and was not charged. She was not hurt.

The truck pulling the trailer was white, troopers said -- either a Ford F-150 pickup or Dodge sport utility vehicle.

While the report did not say whether the truck driver was at fault, it is against state law to leave the scene of an accident.

Anyone with information is urged to contact the Florida Highway Patrol at (813) 631-4020.

Luis Perez, Times staff writer

Comments

[B.E.]

I know the St. Pete Times doesn't edit these comments, but you should start deleting these "patriotactivist.com" entries by Tom, James, John, and any other bogus names they are using. It's fine to express your political opinions regarding a political article, but when you use that in a comment regarding a fatality it is just wrong. The person you "hope will be okay" died yesterday. Have some respect.

[Axe75]

Definitely not the place to post your website link Tom. Have some tact.

[Times Editor]

B.E., thanks for pointing that out. We delete inappropriate posts as we find them. We urge all or our readers to use some judgment and discretion when leaving comments.

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With the limited information available on this unfortunate incident, it is difficult to know if anyone other than the motorcyclist was at fault. My guess is that he checked his mirrors before changing lanes but did not realize that the truck was towing a trailer and simply pulled out too soon.

Trailer axles are usually situated at or near the center so it is unlikely that this was just a minor misjudgement, to hit the rear wheel.

In defence of the truck driver, it is quite possible that he was totally unaware that this accident had ocurred. Having towed a number of trailers over the years, I can say that when travelling at a reasonable speed, they can be pitching and bouncing to quite an extent, particularly when lightly loaded and an extra bump would possibly not be detected.

If this is the case, he surely would not be at fault for leaving the scene of an accident, if he did not know that he had been involevd in one. I suppose he'll need a good lawyer if they the troopers can find him!

[windowsugar]

First and foremost: I am sorry for your loss. It was probably a MURDER.

I had a guy driving a MAKE IT BURN truck play interstate DANGEROUS GAMES and when he was done .. someone, probably his son ( a good confederate boy) pulled up next to me and inches from my car at 60 or more mph was screaming in my window.

WHEN I CALLED FHP TWICE to report this they said, we'll issue a BOLO but had NO INTEREST in the tag #'s or any other data. Despite the fact that MANY lives were endangered.
Because the trooper did not witness it.

MY CONCLUSION IS that they are IN ON IT. Just like corporal JETTON whose family along with mcelroy gray and others have streets named for them in south tampa.
They keep trying to push my family member to get his license. When instead he decided to become a pilot they began to threaten HIS AIRCRAFT.
WHAT are they using those cameras on the interstate for? Were they MAGICALLY TURNED OFF just like for the family of four that was slaugtered???

It's a HHOLESALE SLAUGHTER of the DECENT PEOPLE IN FLORIDA.

WHOLE SALE SLAUGHTER.
They started with MY family a long time ago.
I finally caught on. No sane person can at first believe that people are this evil.
If his parents own a home the MURDERERS WANT IT.

[windowsugar]

I challenge you to call STAR FHP with information pertaining to dangerous drivers. If someone called them to report the white truck they would NOT have done anything. I RECORDED both calls I made.
The second call the woamn was out and out bored. The first didn't sound like she was even taking the info.
I have always held troopers in high regard until jetton and other things surfaced then you look back and realize ....

[generic665]

Jason,

I am so sorry to have lost touch with you. We always think we've got time to play catch up later, taking for granted that we think we have all the time in the world as we get caught up in all those things, the ones that seemed so important at some point or another until we either make the time to notice, or get it thrown in our face when we lose someones so utterly important and special.

Jason was a great person, why? Because he was genuinely a nice guy, a rarity in these times it seems. He gave me the time of day back when I didn't even bother for myself... He was there for people even when they didn't want him to be or even when they didn't deserve it, sometimes almost seeming to let others take advantage of him in his quest to do the "Right thing." He finally came into his own from that awkward kid I met years ago; more self assured and finally making his peace and leaving his mark on the world.

I miss our weekends of grilling out, watching Red Dwarf episodes and random late night conversations, you guys conning me into cooking in exchange for Wrestling Pay Per Views, and really just you hanging out when I was doing the total hermit thing. I've always said it was the mark of a true friendship when you could be hanging out and not having to say or do anything and still be totally comfortable.

I'm not a big people person, but you were, and are, one off the few people I totally trusted and thought of as an honorable human being.

Miss you sir,

Jeremy Strickland aka Rev. Jynxx

If anyone knows who was driving that truck, PLEASE call or let someone know. Maybe it was, maybe it wasn;t their fault, but Jason's family and friends can use this closure amidst all the problems they're going to be dealing with.

[Ron Melancon]

When you get a moment please go to www.dangeroustrailers.org. Please note that every utility trailer under 3,000 pounds in the State of Florida has no standard. In fact anybody can build one and nobody checks the construction of these trailers. Maybe the tire was sticking far away from the trailer. These utility trailers have tires outside the with of the trailer... so they stick out. How do you run from the scene..

[Ron Melancon]

Since 2003,,, 2,239 people killed... 120,000 people injured and 340,000 things damaged by passenger vehicles that tow trailers..... and we do nothing....