ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. – Florida Highway Patrol investigators have charged a man in connection with a 2013 single-vehicle crash that killed two people and critically injured two more.
Hosston Bishop, 22, who was previously booked into the St. Johns County jail on unrelated charges, was charged with two counts of vehicular homicide, reckless driving, two counts of causing serious bodily injury, and failure to use a safety restraint.
State troopers said Bishop was driving an SUV carrying all five people about 1:30 a.m. March 28, 2013. Troopers said the SUV ran off the road at the corner of County Road 208 and County Road 13A South and hit some trees. Troopers said Bishop failed to negotiate a curve.
Joey Stevens (pictured on right), 24, and Alyssa Nearbin (pictured on left), 20, died at the scene. Dylan Charles, 21, and Erin Aderhold, 18, were flown to a hospital in critical condition. Bishop was hospitalized with minor injuries.
For Ginny Stevens, the last year and a half has been extremely hard without her son, Joey.
"I miss him so much! More than anything in the world. I do," she said.
News4Jax was the first to break the news to Stevens that an arrest had been made.
"When you called me, the first thing I did was, when I hung up, is say, 'Thank you, Jesus! Thank you.'"
Bishop told investigators he didn't remember anything about the crash, which was part of the delay in him being charged, troopers said. They said they weren't able to speak to the surviving victims for a long time.
FHP and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement collected and analyzed DNA evidence from the SUV that helped establish probable cause for the charges.
After months of extensive research and investigative techniques, the FHP said it has concluded the investigation.
Bishop has a long driving record. His license has been suspended several times.
He is currently serving five years in prison for unrelated burglary charges. That's where he was served with the warrant Friday.
As they wait for their day in court, Stevens wears a necklace, given to her on Mother's Day by Alyssa Nearbin's family. She and her surviving son, Alex Caruana, choose to remember the good times and the young man they call their hero.
"He was a very good person. He was always right. He'd make you laugh. No matter the situation, he was always on my side," Caruana said. "I looked up to him as a brother, and I just wanted to be like him. I love him."