A Fruitland Park man was arrested for DUI after crashing head-on into a vehicle in the opposite lane while clinically intoxicated.
An officer was headed south on U.S. Hwy. 441 when he saw a white Nissan head north in the southbound lanes at 2:15 a.m. Saturday, according to an arrest report from the Eustis Police Department. The driver, later identified as 26-year-old Daniel Anthony Ardolino, collided head-on with a gray Honda as a result.
Other officers arrived shortly after the crash to see the Honda facing west in the southbound lanes with smoke coming from the hood. South of the Honda sat the Nissan, also facing west. Both sustained severe front-end damage, the report said.
An officer approached the Nissan and found Ardolino sitting in the driver’s seat, unresponsive with his head resting against the steering wheel. All the doors were locked, so the officer banged on the windows several times. Ardolino moaned in pain and moved his head toward the driver’s side window, during which the officer could see active bleeding on the right side of his head, the report said.
Ardolino was not responsive to his commands and continued to moan and mumble incoherently. The officer repeatedly told him to unlock and open the door, to which he said several times he was trying to open it. But he did not try to use the door handle, instead fumbling with items around his lap and waist, the report said.
After multiple instructions, he eventually unlocked and opened his door. He immediately stated he had not been driving, a completely false statement since another officer had been there to see the crash, the report said.
Ardolino stayed seated with his pants resting just above his knees and his shoes off. Those, along with his wallet and phone, laid on the driver’s side floorboard. He had blood dripping around his extremely glossy eyes. He also had a dazed, confused expression with slurred, muffled and difficult to understand speech. He smelled strongly of alcohol when speaking to officers, the report said.
As for the other driver, he sustained a large laceration about three inches wide and three inches long on his forehead. It looked deep, with the skull bone visible, and actively bled. His right ankle seemed to be broken, as well, with a crooked appearance and severe swelling. Due to the extent of his injuries, he was airlifted to the Orlando Regional Medical Center where medical personnel advised that his head injury included a skull fracture, the report said.
Meanwhile, Ardolino was unaware he had even been in an accident. He repeatedly complained of pain in his hands while being evaluated by medical personnel at the scene. His pants remained below his buttocks, and it seemed he did not know they were nearly off, the report said.
It was at this point an officer noticed two plastic baggies in the driver’s side door compartment. One contained marijauna and the other 3.3 grams of cocaine. There was also a small bottle of Patron tequila on the front passenger-side floorboard of the Nissan, the report said.
Lake EMS ultimately took Ardolino to AdventHealth Waterman Hospital, located at 1000 Waterman Way, Tavares. Officers stayed with him while he repeatedly asked to make a phone call to an attorney. His speech was still slurred, requiring medical staff to ask him to repeat himself several times. An officer also denied his request for a phone call at that time, which made him upset. He claimed that the other driver struck him, the report said.
The lead nurse next told Ardolino that medical staff needed to give him an IV, but he refused, saying he would pass out. More staff tried explaining the importance of an IV to him and that he was clinically intoxicated. He continued to argue with them and refused multiple medical instructions, the report said.
He denied being intoxicated, as well, even when the nurse stated she could smell alcohol on his person. EMS personnel told her that he admitted to drinking earlier in the evening while being taken to the hospital, too. She was still able to obtain several blood samples from him, though, the report said.
A criminal history check revealed one misdemeanor citation in 2023 and charges from the Leesburg Police Department in 2023, including two counts of felony possession of marijuana with intent to sell, of synthetic narcotics with intent to sell, of drug paraphernalia and of marijuana with intent to sell and delivery. He was also charged for several drug possessions by Lady Lake in 2023, but the charges were withheld, the report said.
Ardolino was arrested on charges of possession of cocaine and drug paraphernalia for this incident. He was transported to Lake County Jail and released after posting $6,000 bond.