- December 6, 2025
The man who killed a 26-year-old Pathways Elementary faculty member in a 2024 vehicular crash was sentenced to seven years in prison on Monday, Dec. 1.
Wyatt Dickerson, 27, was charged with vehicular homicide and three counts of driving under the influence with damage to person or property for the fatal crash that happened on A1A in Ormond Beach on May 1, 2024.
Ormond Beach Police report Dickerson was traveling at 110 mph on A1A between Harvard Drive and Milsap Road when he crashed into a sedan, sending it airborne and into the opposing southbound lanes. The victim, Mary Pezza, was in the passenger seat of the sedan and was pronounced dead twice: once at the scene and again at the hospital, due to injuries sustained in the crash.
A toxicology report showed Dickerson had been under the influence of marijuana at the time of the crash.
In addition to his prison sentence, Dickerson was given eight years of probation, to be completed after his release.
“This sentencing underscores the deadly dangers of high-speed and reckless driving,” Ormond Beach Police Chief Jesse Godfrey said in a press release. “This senseless crash negatively impacted many people’s lives. A life was lost, and a family forever changed."
