FDOT Road Ranger Killed on Interstate 75 in Pasco County; Bradenton Man Charged With DUI Manslaughter, Troopers Say

A Florida Department of Transportation Road Ranger was struck and killed on Interstate 75 in Pasco County on Sunday, July 12, 2026, while helping set up a lane closure, and troopers have charged a Bradenton man with DUI manslaughter, the Florida Highway Patrol said. According to FHP, the worker, a 24-year-old man from Brandon, was on foot in the roadway near mile marker 274 in the Wesley Chapel area when a vehicle struck him. He died at the scene.

Troopers arrested Darren Christopher Jenkins, 40, of Bradenton, on a charge of DUI manslaughter, according to FHP. The agency said breath samples provided by Jenkins measured 0.334, more than four times Florida's legal limit of 0.08 for blood or breath alcohol concentration. Jenkins is charged, not convicted, and is presumed innocent unless and until a court finds otherwise.

The death of a young roadside worker on one of Florida's busiest interstates has renewed attention on the dangers faced by the people who assist stranded drivers and clear crashes, and on the state's Move Over law meant to protect them. The Road Ranger who died had been doing exactly the kind of work the program exists to provide: responding to a wreck and shielding the scene so others could pass safely. His family has since identified him and spoken publicly about his life.

What Troopers Say Happened

According to the Florida Highway Patrol, the fatal crash occurred shortly before 8:30 p.m. on July 12, 2026, on Interstate 75 near the 274 mile marker in the Wesley Chapel area of Pasco County. Road Rangers had responded to a two-vehicle crash and were working to set up a lane closure to protect the scene when the fatal collision occurred, troopers said.

FHP said the 24-year-old Road Ranger was on foot in the roadway, setting up the lane closure, when a sport utility vehicle drove between two Road Ranger trucks and struck him. The impact was fatal, and the worker was pronounced dead at the scene. Troopers described a situation in which the worker was performing his duties in the travel lanes, protected only by the trucks and warning equipment that Road Rangers use to alert oncoming traffic.

The stretch of I-75 through Pasco County carries heavy volumes of traffic through a fast-growing part of the Tampa Bay region, and lane closures for crashes are a routine part of keeping the interstate moving. According to FHP, the Road Rangers were engaged in that standard safety work when the collision happened, underscoring how ordinary roadside operations can turn deadly in an instant. The account of the crash is drawn from the Florida Highway Patrol.

The Breath Test and the DUI Manslaughter Charge

Troopers arrested Jenkins at the scene and charged him with DUI manslaughter, according to FHP. The agency said Jenkins provided breath samples that measured 0.334, a figure more than four times Florida's legal threshold of 0.08. A reading at that level, if confirmed through the legal process, would place him well above the point at which the state presumes a driver to be impaired.

DUI manslaughter is a serious felony under Florida law, applying when a person operates a vehicle while impaired and, as a result, causes the death of another. The charge reflects the allegation that impairment contributed to the death, but it remains an accusation that must be proven in court. Jenkins is entitled to the presumption of innocence and to contest both the breath results and the broader allegation.

According to FHP, Jenkins was being held in the Pasco County Jail. The circumstances of his custody, including any decisions on bond, are matters for the court. As with any DUI case, the breath samples and the procedures used to obtain them are likely to be examined closely as the case proceeds, and the state carries the burden of establishing impairment and causation beyond a reasonable doubt.

Reports of Earlier Incidents

Reporting on the case, citing law enforcement, indicates that the driver may have been involved in other incidents in the hours and weeks before the fatal crash. According to those accounts, Jenkins was involved in a hit-and-run crash in the Ocala area earlier the same Sunday before traveling south into Pasco County. That reported earlier crash has been attributed to law enforcement sources and reporting on the matter.

Additional reporting indicated that Jenkins had been arrested on a DUI charge in Georgia in the prior month. That reported prior arrest, like the account of the earlier crash, has not been adjudicated in connection with this case and is presented here as it was reported, attributed to law enforcement. It is not proof of impairment or wrongdoing in the Pasco County crash, which will be evaluated on its own evidence.

The Florida Press notes that these reported details about prior incidents are allegations and background provided through reporting and law enforcement, not findings of a court. They are included because they have been part of the public account of the case, but they do not alter the presumption of innocence that applies to the pending DUI manslaughter charge. Each matter would be resolved on its own record.

Remembering Antonio Marazita

The family of the Road Ranger identified him as Antonio Marazita, 24, of Brandon, and his mother spoke publicly about her son in the days after his death. According to those accounts, Joi Marazita described her son as someone who always wanted to help people, a trait that had drawn him to the kind of work he was doing on the night he was killed.

His mother said Antonio had earned a college degree and was close to completing a master's degree in criminal justice, according to the accounts she gave to local media. She said he had recently applied to join the Tampa Police Department, hoping to build a career in public service. The portrait his family painted was of a young man on the cusp of the future he had worked toward.

In remembering her son, Joi Marazita said she hoped his death would serve as a reminder for drivers to slow down and move over when they encounter emergency responders and roadside workers, according to those accounts. Her plea placed a human face on a category of workers whose risks are often invisible to the drivers who pass them at highway speed. The family's decision to speak publicly turned a statistic into a name and a life.

The Road Ranger Program

The Road Ranger Service Patrol is a free service provided by the Florida Department of Transportation, dispatching roving trucks along major highways to assist stranded motorists and manage the aftermath of crashes. Since the program began in 2000, Road Rangers have made millions of assists to Florida drivers, changing flat tires, jump-starting dead batteries, providing emergency fuel or water, and clearing debris from travel lanes.

The work places Road Rangers directly in harm's way. They routinely operate on the shoulders and in the travel lanes of high-speed interstates, often at night and in poor visibility, relying on flashing lights, cones, and their trucks to warn approaching drivers. In the Tampa Bay region, where interstates such as I-75, I-275, and I-4 carry dense and fast-moving traffic, the margin for error is thin.

Motorists can request a Road Ranger by calling the Florida Highway Patrol, and the program is designed so that help arrives at no cost to the driver. The service is widely credited with keeping traffic moving and reducing the risk of secondary crashes by clearing disabled vehicles and debris quickly. The death of one of its workers on I-75 has cast a somber light on the everyday hazards the program's employees accept.

Florida's Move Over Law and Roadside Safety

The crash has drawn renewed attention to Florida's Move Over law, which requires drivers to give space to stopped vehicles displaying warning signals. The law has been expanded in recent years, and it now covers not only law enforcement, emergency, and service vehicles such as tow trucks and Road Ranger trucks, but also disabled and stranded motorists whose hazard lights are flashing.

Under the law, drivers approaching a stopped emergency or service vehicle must move over to a lane away from the vehicle when it is safe to do so. When moving over is not possible, drivers are required to slow to a speed of 20 miles per hour below the posted speed limit as they pass. State officials have repeatedly urged compliance, framing the law as a basic protection for the people who work and stop along Florida's roadways.

Roadside worker safety has been a persistent concern in a state with heavy tourist traffic, rapid population growth, and long stretches of high-speed interstate. Advocates and agencies have used cases like this one to press drivers to stay alert, avoid distractions, and never drive impaired, particularly when passing crash scenes and roadside operations. The Move Over law exists precisely because workers like Road Rangers are so exposed, and the death on I-75 has become a stark example of what the law aims to prevent.

What's Next

The DUI manslaughter case against Jenkins now moves into the Pasco County court system, where prosecutors with the State Attorney's Office for the judicial circuit covering the area will review the Florida Highway Patrol's investigation and determine the formal charges. Jenkins is expected to proceed through the standard early stages of a felony case, including an initial appearance and decisions on bond and pretrial detention.

As a defendant, Jenkins is entitled to legal representation and to contest the charge, including the breath-test evidence and the circumstances of the crash. The presumption of innocence remains with him unless and until a court determines otherwise. Prosecutors, for their part, will bear the burden of proving impairment and its role in the death beyond a reasonable doubt, and any reported prior incidents would be handled according to their own records.

Beyond the courtroom, the crash is likely to feed continued advocacy around the Move Over law and roadside worker safety in the Tampa Bay region and across Florida. The Florida Press will follow the case as it develops, along with any renewed safety efforts prompted by the death of Antonio Marazita, a young Road Ranger killed while doing the job the program created to keep other drivers safe.