JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The driver in a deadly crash on New Year's Day in Jacksonville was arrested and went before a judge Monday morning.
The Florida Highway Patrol arrested Sean Frederik Franke, 20, of Longwood, for his driving actions in an early morning crash on Jan. 1, at the intersection of Beach and Kernan boulevards. Investigators said he was driving a pickup truck with three others inside after leaving a New Year's Eve party when he lost control of the truck and struck a metal pole.
Dara Michelle Kusiv, 20, of Longwood, died in that crash. It also seriously injured 19-year-olds Samantha Kasten and Jacob Materia.
According to a remembrance page on Facebook for Kusiv (pictured, right), she was a sophomore at the University of North Florida and a member of the Theta Iota chapter of Zeta Tau Alpha, and a singer and dancer. Kusiv volunteered at an orphanage in Haiti.
After an extensive investigation and with advice from an attorney, Franke turned himself in to investigators. A toxicology test by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement revealed Franke's blood alcohol content level was at .178 and .175.
Franke was booked into the Duval County jail, where he faces charges of driving under the influence that resulted in manslaughter, two counts of DUI with serious bodily injury, property damage, careless driving and failure to use due care.
The investigation will now be turned over to the state attorney's office for prosecution.