A grocery cart? That's what the Shores hit-and-run victim, 83, was riding in Saturday night
Raymond Martinez was known by his family as a Christian and a handyman who had a knack for fixing things.
A resident of Silver Springs Shores for decades, Martinez was killed in a hit-and-run crash that also injured his friend over the weekend.
Mary Pate Wise, the person accused of driving the vehicle that hit and killed Martinez, has spent several nights in the Marion County Jail. For now, she's expected to spend more time behind bars.
Martinez's family wishes Wise would've stopped, tried to help, or do something to assist their loved one after the crash.
"She should've stayed. She shouldn't have left. She could've explain to the police what happened," Martinez's brother, Edward, and his wife, Ligia, who have been married for 49 years and live in New York, told a Star-Banner reporter during a telephone interview on Monday.
The couple wishes Martinez's friend, Luciano Torres, who was with Martinez when the crash occurred, wasn't with the victim.
"He (referring to Torres) shouldn't have taken him" on their trip to the store that night, Ligia Martinez said.
Court appearance
On Monday Wise made her first court appearance in front of County Judge Tommy Thompson via Zoom from the jail.
Booked into the jail in the early morning hours of March 3, Wise has been charged with hit-and-run/fail to stop remain at crash involving death, hit-and-run/fail to stop remain at crash involve serious bodily injury, and hit-and-run/leave scene of crash involve property damage.
Cpl. Wilson Swartz, a Florida Highway Patrol traffic homicide investigator, had charged Wise with the offenses following the deadly traffic crash late Saturday in Silver Springs Shores.
During the hearing, the judge told Wise, wearing a red and white jail uniform, that if convicted, she could face up to 30 years in prison.
Assistant State Attorney Pete Sziklai told the court that Wise's arrest violated her previous bail bond. Sziklai said Wise had been arrested in Sumter County recently for possession of a controlled substance and methamphetamine.
The judge told Wise he was denying bail in this most recent case because of her previous arrest. Looking sad, Wise was appointed the Public Defender's Office for representation. Her next court date will be in April.
Wise's criminal past
From 2002 through 2020, the 40-year-old Silver Springs Shores woman has had multiple interactions with various law enforcement agencies, according to court records. Some of the encounters were for criminal offenses, and others were traffic related.
On the criminal side, Wise has spent time in prison for possession of cocaine. She was released in January 2016.
Her other convictions include dealing in stolen property, domestic violence, violation of domestic violence pre-trial release, and offer to commit prostitution.
Her driving infractions are numerous. They include expired tag six months or less, not having a motor vehicle registration (three times,) driving while license is suspended or revoked and no proof of insurance.
In 2020, adjudication was withheld for not having a valid driver's license
The crash
FHP officials said Torres, 49, of Silver Springs Shores, was riding a tricycle east on Spring Road near Spring Place in the Shores. He was dragging along a shopping cart in which Martinez, 83, was riding. Troopers said there were groceries in the cart, suggesting the two probably were coming back home from Walmart.
Family members said Torres recently came to Martinez's Silver Springs Shores residence. Martinez's family said he (Martinez) has lived at the home since the late 1970s.
Troopers said Wise, driving an older model Chevy Silverado, was traveling in the opposite direction. She struck the bicycle and the shopping cart, then drove off. The crash occurred close to 11 p.m. The intersection is not lit.
Martinez was pronounced deceased at the scene at 11:09 p.m., authorities said. Torres was transported to HCA Florida Ocala Hospital for treatment of minor injuries.
Sheriff's deputies assisted troopers in searching for the vehicle, which eventually was found at Wise's residence. Interviewed by troopers, she admitted she was driving the truck. She said she thought she had struck a mailbox or some object in the roadway, according to an arrest report.
Troopers said the truck damage isn't consistent with hitting a mailbox. A residential security video that troopers viewed showed Wise's pickup truck stop for a second after impact, then drive away.
She was arrested shortly after 2:05 a.m. Sunday and taken to the jail.
Remembering Martinez
Martinez said his brother could fix anything, mowed lawns, played musical instruments like the guitar and piano in church, was a devoted Jehovah's Witness for many years, and was a friend to anyone.
"He's my brother. We were always together," Martinez said.
Martinez said his brother was the eldest of four brothers and a sister. He said his brother was born in Haiti and moved to the United States in 1962.
Martinez said his brother has three adult children, two daughters and a son. Martinez said Torres called and told the family about the crash.
Hit-and-runs: FHP needs help finding two hit-and-run drivers; sole survivor of SR 40 E crash has died
Martinez said whenever he visits Florida, he cooked and did laundry with his brother.
"I'm going to miss family vacations with him," Martinez said.
Contact Austin L. Miller at austin.miller@starbanner.com
Contact Austin L. Miller at austin.miller@starbanner.com
This article originally appeared on Ocala Star-Banner: Grocery cart occupant killed in hit-and-run crash in the Shores
