Autopsy reveals little in deadly car accident

Autopsy results provided few answers to the cause of a March 2 accident which claimed the lives of three High Springs residents.  A son, a mother and a grandmother were killed when their car crashed into a metal pole near the Days Inn on U.S. Highway 441 in Alachua.

Autopsy results were not able to conclusively identify the cause of the accident but did offer a possible explanation.

Alachua Police Department Officer Jesse Sandusky said the pathologist identified the most likely explanation was that Mary President, the driver of the car, was actively having a seizure, causing the car to careen out of control.

President had a history of having seizures and was on seizure medication. However, the theory cannot be confirmed because the autopsy could not determine whether she was indeed having a seizure just before the crash.

The Nissan Infiniti Q45 had been traveling at an approximate speed of 80 miles per hour as President apparently lost control, Sandusky said. 

As it was traveling southbound and changing lanes on U.S. 441, the car clipped a pick-up truck, drove off the road entirely, hit a culvert and went airborne, hitting the pole nearly 20 feet in the air. The pole sheered the car into two sections, leaving no survivors.

The three occupants of the car were Jarron Irby, 8, his mother, Faith President, 27, and her mother, Mary President, 61. The bizarre circumstances of the accident left many questions unanswered, mainly what caused the driver to lose control of the car?

Sandusky said the department ruled out a possible mechanical malfunction as the cause of the crash.

The toxicology screen came back negative for any substance abuse, and the medical examiner did not find any other medical conditions that might have led to the crash.

All three of the car’s occupants were wearing seatbelts, Sandusky said.

He said there is nothing further the department can do, and he expects the investigation to be closed by the end of the week.