A new charge of vehicular homicide was filed Tuesday against a 40-year-old man in connection with an April crash in Clay County that left a 23-year-old man dead, according to court records.
Clifford Ringer, of Middleburg, is also charged with driving with a suspended or revoked license with a third or subsequent offense, Clay County court records show.
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The fiery four-car crash happened April 14 at Wells Road and Debarry Avenue in Orange Park — as Gavin Conroy, of Clay County, was on his way to work at the Outback Steakhouse.
“My son was stopped at a red light,” said Conroy’s mother, Donna, previously told News4JAX.
According to an arrest report, Ringer rear-ended Conroy’s car, causing him to crash into two other vehicles In front of him.
Conroy suffered burns on 93% of his body in the crash and was hospitalized in critical condition at UF Health Shands Burn Unit in Gainesville. His family said that both of his legs and several fingers were amputated. Conroy’s mother later told News4JAX that her son died.
According to prosecutors, on July 2, Ringer, who was out on bond at the time, ran a red light — the same scenario that prosecutors said led to the crash involving Conroy — and was given a traffic citation. After that, a judge on Aug. 1 revoked Ringer’s bond.
On Aug. 15, at Ringer’s first court hearing on his bond status since Conroy’s death, the State Attorney’s Office asked for enhanced penalties that could send Ringer to prison for 10 years in light of Conroy’s death and Ringer’s criminal record, which involves several convictions since 1998, including a robbery in 2010 and several traffic violations.
While enhanced penalties are something that the Conroy family supports, they were not happy about the judge’s other decision — to grant Ringer a $260,000 bond.
As of Wednesday, Ringer remained in the Clay County jail on bond, according to jail records.
Court records show his next hearing is Sept. 12.