A suspect has been arrested on a warrant for the negligent vehicular homicide of a husband and wife on the Florida Turnpike in 2023.
A trooper with the Florida Highway Patrol investigated a traffic homicide collision involving 25-year-old Destinee Alize Wiggins of Kissimmee on the Florida Turnpike in Lake County on Feb. 24, 2023, according to an affidavit of probable cause out of Lake County. Her actions while driving a white 2020 Toyota Corolla SR were found to have caused the deaths of Gary and Susan Helen Morgenroth who were in a gray 2022 Chevrolet Equinox LT. He was 69 and she was 68. They had lived in New Jersey before moving to Ocala more than a decade ago.
Prior to the collision, a crash with road blockage had occurred near mile post 281, resulting in traffic congestion. The Florida Turnpike’s Traffic Management Center displayed the message “Crash Ahead: Use Caution” on the overhead signs to warn drivers of traffic ahead, the affidavit said.
Wiggins was traveling southbound at high speeds in the inside lane of the turnpike behind the Morgenroths, approaching mile post 285.5. She failed to stop for traffic ahead, and the front of her car struck the rear of the Morgenroths. Her vehicle rotated counterclockwise while continuing to travel in a southwest direction, the affidavit said.
The right side of Wiggins’ vehicle struck the rear impact bar of a black 2020 Peterbilt 579 semi-truck tractor with a 2023 Fontaine flatbed trailer attached. The semi came to final rest facing south in the outside lane of the turnpike, the affidavit said.
Wiggins continued in a northeast direction where the right front bumper struck the back tire of a blue 2014 Jeep Cherokee. She came to a rest facing east, straddling the inside and outside southbound lanes of the turnpike, the affidavit said.
Meanwhile, the Morgenroths’ vehicle went southbound, and the rear began to rotate in a counterclockwise direction. The right front struck the left rear of the Jeep. The Jeep then went forward until the front bumper struck the back bumper of a red 2001 Dodge Ram truck, the affidavit said.
As the Morgenroths’ vehicle left the inside lane and entered the east paved shoulder, the right rear door of their vehicle struck the left rear quarter panel of the Jeep. The Jeep came to a rest facing south in the inside lane of the turnpike, the affidavit said.
The Morgenroths’ vehicle continued southeast down the paved shoulder, where its left side struck the guardrail. The right side struck and traveled down the left side of the Ram truck. The truck came to rest facing south in the inside lane of the turnpike, the affidavit said.
The Morgenroths’ vehicle continued traveling southeast, and its lower right A-pillar struck the left side of the semi’s trailer. The vehicle rotated clockwise, and the front right hood and lower left windshield hit the underside of a white 2018 Peterbilt 579 semi-truck trailer with a 2007 Utility enclosed trailer attached. It became lodged under the trailer, the affidavit said.
The Morgenroths’ vehicle came to rest facing southwest in the east paved shoulder of the turnpike. Its hood was under the semi’s trailer. The semi came to rest in the inside lane of the turnpike, the affidavit said.
The Groveland Fire Department and Leesburg EMS were dispatched to the collision. The Morgenroths were pronounced dead at the scene. Wiggins was taken to the Orlando Regional Medical Center with incapacitating injuries, and the driver of the Jeep was taken to the Orlando Health South Lake with incapacitating injuries, the affidavit said.
Troopers then arrived at the scene to conduct a traffic homicide investigation. They took measurements of the scene and digitally recorded statements. They also dispatched a trooper to the ORMC to check for signs of impairment but did not observe any, the affidavit said.
Multiple witnesses on scene placed Wiggins as being in control of her vehicle at the time of the collision. Additionally, an independent witness was driving a semi-truck with a trailer attached in the outside lane of the turnpike. Through his rearview and left side mirrors, he saw a white sedan approaching from the rear to the left of his vehicle at high speeds, the affidavit said.
The witness saw the front of the sedan hit the back of a grey SUV. He did not see any brake lights or braking input by the driver of the sedan, Wiggins. The front-facing in-cab camerica of his company vehicle captured the collision, the affidavit said.
The following day, a medical examiner conducted autopsies of the deceased and determined the cause of death to be blunt injuries of head and torso. The manner of death was listed as an accident, the affidavit said.
Data collected from Wiggins’ vehicle post-crash showed that five seconds before the collision, her speed ranged from 96.3 mph to 96.9 mph with no braking. The Morgenroths’ vehicle, which was going between 4 mph to 2mph, accelerated forward to 47 mph after being struck from behind by Wiggins, the affidavit said.
On March 5, 2023, a trooper obtained a statement from Wiggins. She advised that she was the driver and sole occupant of the Toyota at the time of the collision. She was traveling from her home in Tallahassee to her grandmother’s home in Kissimmee to attend a class the next day, the affidavit said.
When asked to describe what happened, Wiggins stated, “I just remember driving and I woke up and I didn’t see any, like, red lights or anyone stopping, or anything like that, um, yeah.” When asked what the traffic conditions were like, she described the number of cars on the roadway as being “medium.” She explained the traffic had come to a stop a few miles before the crash but said the flow picked back up to speed, the affidavit said.
Wiggins described the vehicle ahead of her as a black SUV. However, when asked how fast she was going at the time of the collision, she stated, “I’ll wait for my legal counsel.” She stated the crash happened during the day, the weather was clear and there were no visual obstructions keeping her from seeing traffic ahead, the affidavit said.
Wiggins denied being on her phone but admitted she had music playing. When asked which lane she was in before the collision, she stated, “I’ll wait for my legal counsel for that one.” She did say she was traveling southbound, but she did not see “no red lights, no stopping ahead,” the affidavit said.
On April 10, 2023, the FHP received a toxicology report for Wiggins. A drug recognition expert later looked at those results and confirmed that Wiggins had smoked cannabis within the hour of having her blood drawn at the hospital post-crash, the affidavit said.
Wiggins was ultimately arrested on Tuesday, April 29, by the Kissimmee Police Department for a Lake County warrant charging her with two counts of negligent homicide (vehicular killing of human being or unborn child). She was transported to Lake County Jail on Thursday morning to be held without bond.