Case dismissed against man who struck vehicle while texting and driving

Feb. 29—LONDON — In what was an astonishing outcome, a Florida man charged with texting while driving and hitting another vehicle walked away free from court on Tuesday morning.

Johnathon Brantley, 49, of Brooksville, Florida, was scheduled for a preliminary hearing in Laurel District Court on Tuesday. He was charged with one count of first-degree assault, two counts of first-degree wanton endangerment and one count of driving a motor vehicle using a hand-held mobile phone.

Brantley was driving on I-75 near Exit 29 in southern Laurel County when he struck a vehicle that was stopped along the roadway. One of the passengers was a 6-month pregnant woman, who was airlifted from the scene for medical treatment. The man was attempting to push the vehicle, which had run out of gas.

In an unexpected turn of events, the pregnant female testified before Laurel District Judge John Chappell that she wanted the case to be dismissed against Brantley.

Emily Croucher, the attorney who represented Brantley, said the request from a victim was quite unexpected.

"She just rolled in here in a wheelchair and told the judge she wanted the charges dismissed," Croucher said. "She said she thought he just made a mistake."

Croucher said she had never heard of such a request since she has been practicing law.

"I never saw something like this happen before," she said. "Sometimes justice doesn't involve people convicted or going to jail."

At the victim's request, Chappell then dismissed the charges.

Jail records show that Brantley was incarcerated following the accident and held under $10,000 cash bond, which was set at 10%, or $1,000. He was released on Feb. 22.