- April 18, 2024
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Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood was injured on Thursday, March 18, after he was struck by a passenger car while riding his bicycle, and Port Orange Police have arrested the 20-year-old driver who fled the scene.
At around 4:26 p.m., POPD units responded to the 1600 block of Town West Boulevard in Port Orange after receiving a call about a hit and run involving the sheriff, according to a press release. The crash was captured on a Waste Pro Truck's dash camera, and the driver of the truck, Allen Ramos, pulled to the side of the road and was the first on the scene to help Chitwood. This is the second time the sheriff has been struck by a vehicle while riding his bicycle; in 2017, he was struck a pickup truck.
Using license plate reader technology, police were able to identify the driver of the vehicle, who was found in a residence in Deltona. Paige Bergman advised officers that she had been shopping on Amazon on her phone when she struck Chitwood, according to a statement by the sheriff on Facebook.
"I know this young woman had no intention of running me down," he wrote. "That’s what a lot of distracted drivers say after they cause a tragedy. Just imagine if that had been a child or an elderly person on that bike, or if the car drifted a couple more inches to the right."
Chitwood was taken to Halifax Health for his injuries. He suffered road rash, a gash from the passenger side mirror and a fractured fibula he said doctors hope will heal on its own. The sheriff said he considered himself lucky to be back on his feet.
"To Allen Ramos, the WastePro truck driver who witnessed the crash, got it on video and pulled over to give me a hand: I will never forget what you did for me," Chitwood wrote. "There were several others who pulled over to help, too, and I appreciate each and every one of you."
Bergman was charged with leaving the scene of a motor vehicle crash involving serious bodily injury.
