JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A Jacksonville man was arrested Monday on DUI charges in an October hit-and-run crash that killed a young woman, the Florida Highway Patrol said.
Keith Harris, 50, is charged with driving under the influence-manslaughter, vehicular homicide, DUI-serious bodily injury, DUI-property damage and leaving the scene of a crash with a death.
About 1 a.m. Oct. 9, troopers said, La'Shaun Diane Ealey was driving on Interstate 95, just north of Church Street, when her Toyota Corolla was hit by a Dodge Ram truck driven by Harris.
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Ealey, 21, died at the scene. Troopers said the passenger in her car was seriously hurt.
Harris ran off and was later arrested, investigators said.
He was officially charged on Monday as the at-fault driver in the deadly crash, according to the Highway Patrol.
Harris was booked into the Duval County Jail and ordered held on $330,000 bond.
"I've known for a couple of days that an arrest would be made," said Ellen Hendrix, the mother of Ealey.
Hendrix told News4Jax on Tuesday that while she's happy an arrest has been made, she's also sad because she feels like it was just yesterday when she learned her daughter had been killed.
"It's been a long time coming. I really miss my daughter. Nothing can bring her back. It's been very emotional," she said. “It’s just pain that never goes away. I still haven’t accepted my daughter has left, that she has been taken from me. I haven’t accepted it. It’s been hard on me and all my children. It’s been a rough road.”
And that road could get a lot tougher because this case hasn’t even gone to court yet. Ealey's family members said they’re preparing to handle what could be a tough time seeing the case play out before a judge.
If convicted, Harris could face up to 30 years in prison due to the severity of the charges.