JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A 19-year-old motorcyclist who was critically injured in a hit-and-run crash on Gate Parkway last month has died.
The charges against the man accused of hitting John Leone and then leaving the scene have been upgraded to DUI manslaughter.
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Matthew Frye, 33, has a history of traffic arrests and is a registered sex offender.
According to the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office, Leone was riding a motorcycle east on Gate Parkway about 10:40 p.m. when a car driven west by Frye turned left into the path of the motorcycle. Police said the car was turning into the Thornton Park Luxury Apartments, between Southside Boulevard and Belfort Road.
Leone was taken to UF Health Jacksonville in critical condition and later died. Frye was arrested after police said he left the scene.
The arrest was Frye's fourth traffic arrest in Florida. He has two DUI charges in Nassau County and one DUI arrest in Duval County. The judge presiding at Frye's first appearance was told Frye had two other DUI arrests from out of state. Frye's bond was set at $600,000.
Frye, who lives in St. Marys, Georgia, was arrested for rape in Tennessee in 2008. He was placed on the Tennessee sex offender registry. After reaching a plea agreement three months later, he moved back to Georgia and was placed on Georgia's sex offender registry in 2010.
Police said after the Gate Parkway accident, Frye parked the car near the apartment's clubhouse and was spotted walking in the complex by officers. Frye's girlfriend told officers Frye drank two margaritas at a bar earlier.
According to the arrest report, Frye admitted to drinking before driving to the apartment and said he told his girlfriend, who wanted to check on the motorcyclist, that she shouldn't do so "because we've been drinking."
The arrest report also said officers noticed a strong odor of alcoholic beverage on Frye's breath, his eyes were watery and bloodshot and his speech was blurred. Frye initially refused to provide a blood sample, so officers had to obtain a search warrant to draw his blood.