"Ira Leesfield"

Published on: July 29, 2024

E-biker accused of leaving scene after crash that injured man on Central Florida beach, police say.

An E-bike rider was charged with a felony after an alleged hit-and-run crash with a man on a Central Florida beach, local police announced Wednesday.

The 37-year-old was charged Monday with felony leaving the scene of an accident with injuries and operating an electric bicycle in a manner likely to cause harm after the Memorial Day crash on Ormond Beach, about an hour outside of Orlando in Volusia County, Florida.

The incident took place around 5 p.m. on May 27 and, according to police, the man injured in the event had been playing soccer near where the E-bike rider was speeding. The area where he was riding is set aside for pedestrians. Following the crash, the man who was playing soccer was rushed to the hospital where it was determined he had three broken ribs. The E-biker had left before the police arrived.

Published on: July 29, 2024

Florida driver faces charges after deadly crash Sunday

By Leesfield & Partners

A Florida driver is facing felony charges after police say he was driving drunk, causing a fiery crash that killed the other driver.

The crash happened around 3 a.m. Sunday between a Dodge Durango and a Chevy Silverado pickup truck in Pasco County. The driver of the Dodge was going the wrong way down State Road 56 when he crashed “nearly head-on” with the pickup truck, according to Florida Highway Patrol. Following the crash, the pickup truck overturned and caught fire. The driver of that vehicle was pronounced dead at the scene.

The man driving the Dodge Durango and at least one other passenger in that car were taken to the hospital for non-life-threatening injuries. The man was charged with DUI manslaughter and DUI property damage following his release from the hospital, officials said.

Published on: July 19, 2024

At least one person died following crash between car and bicyclist Thursday in Miami Gardens

By Leesfield & Partners

A bicyclist died Thursday morning after being hit by a car in Miami Gardens, officials say.

Emergency responders were called to the scene at 6:15 a.m. near Miami Gardens Drive and U.S. 441 after a driver in a black Nissan lost control of their car near Northwest 182nd Street. The car went off the road into trees before landing on a side access road, hitting the bicyclist.

The bicyclist died at the scene, according to reporting from The Miami Herald.

Published on: July 19, 2024

Child’s heat-related death in Arizona car acts as stark reminder for parents to never leave children unattended in parked cars

By Leesfield & Partners

Safety is always at the top of parents’ minds. It seems that around every corner is a new hazard they must be on the lookout for. From choking hazards, gun-related incidents, car accidents and drownings that are more prevalent than ever before, the statistics are enough to send any parent into a spiral.

This week in Arizona, a family is suffering through the reality of one of those unthinkable fears after the father of a 2-year-old girl left her in a car parked in their Arizona driveway. In a summer that saw record-breaking heat, the father told police he left the child in the parked car with the engine running because he did not want to wake her. The father was allegedly distracted by video games and putting away groceries. He was occupied for about three hours before he checked on the little girl, according to reporting from national news outlets.

Police investigating the child’s death say that the father – who has since been charged with second-degree murder and child abuse related to his daughter’s death – regularly left the little girl and her two older brothers in the car and added that he knew the car would shut off when in park for more than 30 minutes. The temperature in Arizona on the day of the child’s death had reached 109 degrees.

Published on: July 2, 2024

Lawsuit Filed in Case of City of Doral Police Department Officers injured in April shooting at Martini Bar

By Leesfield & Partners

Two police officers with the City of Doral Police Department are suing a local bar, its managing company, a security company and one other after a man was allowed inside the location with a gun.

The shooting happened on April 6, 2024, at the Martini Bar Doral, located at 3450 NW 83rd Ave., Suite 144. The two officers, Andre A. Romo and Ricardo A. Acevedo, were patrolling the area on off-duty detail when a dispute broke out involving 37-year-old Jamal Wayne Wood who entered the bar with a gun. The shooting resulted in the death of a security guard and the injury of seven others, including the two responding officers. Wood was also killed that night by responding officers.

Acevedo and and Romo responded to the scene after seeing the chaos of fleeing patrons. Both officers were injured by the stampede of customers as they tried to get inside to stop Wood’s rampage. Wood aimed and shot at Romo and Acevedeo and the other officers who responded to the scene. Romo was “dangerously close” to being hit and Acevedo was shot in the leg, mere centimeters from his femoral artery, according to a lawsuit filed Monday by Bernardo Pimentel II, a Trial Attorney with Leesfield & Partners, P.A..

Published on: June 25, 2024

Consumer Product Safety Commission urges consumers to steer clear of these carbon monoxide detectors. What’s wrong with the product?

By Leesfield & Partners

In a statement released late last week, the Consumer Product Safety Commission urged buyers to avoid a specific company’s carbon monoxide detectors and replace it immediately.

Carbon monoxide detectors have the capacity to prevent about 200 deaths of accidental exposure a year, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission.

With regular episodes of exposure to the lethal gas dominating headlines including the hospitalization of over a dozen Miami condo residents earlier this month, the use of these life-saving detectors has never been more important. However, some companies making these essential devices should be avoided.

Published on: June 4, 2024

Dozens of Miami condo residents hospitalized Tuesday after possible carbon monoxide leak. How often does this happen?

By Leesfield & Partners

About 60 people were treated for carbon monoxide poisoning and 22 were taken to the hospital after a possible leak Tuesday at a Miami condominium.

The possible leak was reported just before 5 a.m. at the Hemingway Villa Condominiums in West Miami-Dade, according to reporting from The Miami Herald. By 7 a.m. Tuesday, emergency responders were still searching for the leak.

Additional details were not immediately available Tuesday.

Published on: May 21, 2024

Miami Trolley Hits Man Trying to Retrieve Bicycle in Little Havana, police say. Are pedestrian deaths on the rise?

By Leesfield & Partners

Any pedestrian crossing the street on U.S. 1 or trekking down the sidewalk on Kendall Drive during rush hour knows to remain vigilant. Drivers in Miami have been known to text behind the wheel, speed, take traffic laws as suggestions and honk when unnecessary. The joke that Miami’s distracted drivers don’t know what they are doing is shared among coworkers, friends and grocery store clerks alike with a disapproving shake of their heads.

It is only when there is a horrific and violent crash that cannot be undone that the chuckling stops and people are reminded of just how dangerous the roads can be.

What happened?

Published on: May 21, 2024

Ocala driver charged after driving drunk in crash that killed 8, injured 38. How Leesfield & Partners does its part to fight for families and eradicate the prevalence of impaired drivers on the road.

By Leesfield & Partners

People all over the world rely on public transportation to get them where they need to go every day. They go to work, school and are expected to come home safely. Sadly, that was not the case for at least 46 people last week in Marion County after a bus rollover crash killed eight farm workers on board and injured 38 others.

According to a statement from the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, there were 53 people aboard a bus just before 7 a.m. on May 14 when it had a sideswipe crash with a 2001 Ford Ranger private truck. The bus went off the road following the crash, through a fence and later rolled over.

At least eight of the 38 passengers who were injured were reported to be in critical condition, according to the Miami Herald. The driver of the truck involved in the incident, 41-year-old Bryan Maclean Howard, of Ocala, was charged Tuesday with eight counts of driving under the influence and manslaughter. Details on the name of the transportation company that operated the bus in the crash were not immediately available.

Published on: February 27, 2024

E-Bikes banned in Key Biscayne following tragic wrongful death incident of bicyclist – A call for legislative action

By Leesfield & Partners

Man-on-e-bike-300x200 A recent accident in Key Biscayne, Florida, involving a 12-year-old riding an e-bike and a traditional bicycle, tragically resulted in the death of the bicyclist, Megan Andrews, a career-educator and pillar in the community. This incident has once again brought the dangers of e-bikes, particularly when operated by younger riders, into sharp focus.

Key Biscayne’s local leaders, under massive public pressure, approved a temporary complete ban on e-bikes during an emergency meeting. The temporary ban will be in place for 60 days, the maximum length of time the Village could approve without running afoul of the law. The ban applies all roads of the Village of Key Biscayne except for Crandon Boulevard (the main and highest-traffic roadway of Key Biscayne) because it is owned and regulated by Miami-Dade County.

Electric bikes, or e-bikes, have become increasingly popular in the entire country, including Florida. However, when it comes to children using e-bikes and the dangers they bring, the legislator has dropped the ball miserably by failing to address crucial safety concerns: