FHP: St. Johns County deputy injured after patrol car rear-ends semi

Deputy charged with careless driving, seat belt violation, troopers say

CLAY COUNTY, Fla. – A St. Johns County Sheriff's Office deputy was injured Friday afternoon when his marked patrol cruiser hit the back of a semitruck in Clay County, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.

It happened about 1:45 p.m. on U.S. Highway 17 at Hall Park Road. 

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Troopers said the driver of the semitractor-trailer slowed down and stopped due to train tracks, as required by law, and Deputy Mark Juen, of St. Augustine, failed to notice the truck, a tanker, had stopped. Troopers said that's when the patrol car, a Ford Taurus, struck the back of the semitruck.

The 31-year-old deputy, who troopers said was not wearing a seat belt, was taken to Baptist Clay with minor injuries, according to the Highway Patrol report.

The deputy was charged with careless driving and a seat belt violation, the Highway Patrol report shows.

The driver of the semitruck, a 47-year-old Jacksonville man, was reportedly uninjured.Â