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Fatal DUI

On April 27th, 2017, ex-Mississippi police detective John Camfield drove his black Kia into a group of Polk County, Florida, middle school students who had just gotten off their school bus.

The crash injured four teens and killed 13-year-old Jahiem Robertson.

Instead of stopping, the 48-year-old put the pedal to the metal and tried to get away. When he turned the corner, he hit another car.

Luckily, the other driver in that crash suffered only minor injuries, and Camfield’s car was disabled, so he was unable to get away.

One of the girls who saw the crash contacted her father, who worked in law enforcement and lived nearby. He hopped in his squad car, responded to the second crash scene, and took Camfield into custody.

An investigation revealed that Camfield had a blood alcohol level of point one four seven, almost double the legal limit.

Detectives learned that during his career in law enforcement, Camfield struggled with excessive drinking.

Legal Proceedings

A year after the crash, Camfield pleaded no contest to DUI manslaughter. He was not given a plea deal, and his plea carried the same weight as a guilty plea.

Before his sentence was handed down, he stated, ” I had no way of controlling the events that occurred.” He continued
“I had not been drinking at all that day. This was not intentional, this was not a drinking and driving issue. This was a medical issue.”

After his lies, the judge sentenced him to 30 years in prison for DUI manslaughter and five years for DUI with serious bodily injury. He also received four years of probation, and his license was revoked permanently.

Death

Camfield didn’t spend much time behind bars. According to the Florida Department of Corrections, he died on September 9th, 2019.