Key West Injury Lawyer Blog

Published on: February 26, 2026

Four Injured in Monroe County Boat Crash. What to Know.

At least four people were taken to the hospital after a boat hit a channel marker in the Florida Keys Friday afternoon, according to local media.

Emergency responders were called out to the crash around 4:45 p.m. of Tavernier where a boat had hit a channel marker and ejected at least six people. Other boaters in the area helped pull two people from the water, according to reporting from The Miami Herald.

At least two of the four people who were injured were taken via helicopter to Jackson South Medical Center in Miami-Dade County and two others were taken to mariners Hospital in Tavernier.

Published on: February 23, 2026

Two Dead, One Injured in Multi-Car Crash on Card Sound Road near Monroe County Line. What to Know.

By Leesfield & Partners

At least two people died and another was injured in a multi-vehicle crash Thursday, shutting down parts of Card Sound Road in Florida City.

The crash happened around 5:15 a.m. Thursday about eight miles south of U.S. 1 and involved at least three vehicles, according to reporting from WSVN. At least two people died at the scene and one other was taken to a local hospital in critical condition.

Immediately following the accident, Card Sound Road remained closed while emergency responders worked in the area.

Published on: February 20, 2026

‘One of Our Own:’ Community Bands Together Following Tragic Monroe County Blaze.

By Leesfield & Partners

A Florida Keys family that narrowly escaped a Jan. 19 fire and lost their home in the blaze is being bolstered by their community.

“We’re just glad we were there and we and all the other neighbors did what anyone would,” one neighbor, also a principal at a local school, told reporters with Keys Weekly.

The neighbor was with two others when they noticed the smoke at around 10:30 a.m. on Monday, Jan. 19. Since it was Martin Luther King Jr. Day, many schools and offices were closed for the holiday.

Published on: February 18, 2026

Leesfield & Partners: 50 years of Representing Families, Locals and Tourists in Monroe County

By Leesfield & Partners

The story of Leesfield & Partners, a Florida personal injury law firm, is nearly inseparable from Monroe County and the Florida Keys.

“I was sort of thrust into the law by an eviction notice on my mom’s apartment when I was about 12 years old,” said Ira Leesfield, the firm’s Founder and Managing Partner, in a recent interview with Miami Today. “We couldn’t afford the rent, and she was a single mom with three children … My mom was standing there in tears, and I said to myself, ‘this is not the place I want to be for the rest of my life.’ I wanted better circumstances and to help others get to a better place as well.”

The law, he went on to tell reporters, was a good place to start. Following law school, Mr. Leesfield found himself trying his first-ever case in Key West in 1973. This was also the first trial in Florida under the state’s newly adopted comparative negligence law. That landmark case not only shaped the direction of Florida jurisprudence but also began the firm’s enduring commitment to the Keys community.

Published on: January 23, 2026

Police: Man Steals Golf Cart, Ditches Injured Friend in Key West. What to Know.

By Leesfield & Partners

A Winter Haven Man is facing criminal charges after police say he stole a golf cart and left an injured friend behind over the weekend in Key West, according to reporting from Channel 10 News.

Police were called out to the 2800 block of North Roosevelt Boulevard around 7:45 a.m. Saturday after they got a call about an injured man. The caller told police that she saw the man lying in the street and helped him move to the sidewalk before calling 911. The man told authorities that he fell out of the backseat of a golfcart after his friend made a U-turn and left him.

The man was taken to the hospital where it was later determined he would need surgery to repair a broken hip.

Published on: January 8, 2026

Motor Vehicle Crash Deaths Doubled in Florida Keys in 2025, data shows. What to Know.

By Leesfield & Partners

While 2025 showed overall Monroe County crashes were down from 2024, roadway deaths almost doubled, according to data from the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles’ Crash Dashboard.

Monroe County crashes were down from 1,732 in 2024 to 1,600 in 2025, the data, published regularly online, showed. Despite this slight decline in overall accidents, deaths in the area from motor vehicle crashes doubled from six fatalities in 2024 to 12 in 2025.

In 2023, at least 18 people died as the result of tragic crashes in the area. There were approximately 1,400 crashes recorded for that year.

Published on: December 24, 2025

Child Bicyclist Killed in Florida Keys Crash. What to Know.

By Leesfield & Partners

A mother and daughter riding their bikes in the Florida Keys were involved in a tragic crash with a pickup truck, resulting in the 7-year-old’s death Tuesday, Dec. 23, according to local media.

The driver involved in the incident, who has not been named by police as of Wednesday, Dec. 24, will face criminal charges, according to reporting from The Miami Herald.

The crash happened around 2:50 p.m. at the Valero Gas Station, located at 7301 Overseas Highway in Marathon. The driver was in a Ford F-250 and was allegedly coming out of the gas station to make a right turn when the child and her mother were crossing the entrance.

Published on: December 9, 2025

Coast Guard ends Search for Missing Diver in the Florida Keys. What to Know.

By Leesfield & Partners

The search for a diver reported missing over the weekend was suspended Sunday, pending further information, according to the U.S. Coast Guard.

Ellen Ruth Domb, 79, of North Palm Beach, was reported missing following a dive Friday morning at the USNS Hoyt S. Vanderberg wreck off of Key West. In an online statement from the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, officials said that Domb was separated from her dive buddy within minutes of entering the water. There were strong currents that day, according to the statement.

The 150-to-200-foot dive is a popular one, attracting thousands of divers annually. It is the second largest shipwreck in the world. The former missile tracking ship was intentionally sunk nearly seven miles south of Key West in 2009 to be used as an artificial reef, according to the Miami Herald.

Published on: December 9, 2025

Three Dead After Vessel Capsizes Over the Weekend in Cape Coral. What to Know.

By Leesfield & Partners

At least three people died over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend after a boat capsized on the Caloosahatchee River, according to reporting from News-Press.

At least one other person involved in the accident remained in “critical but stable condition” as of Monday morning.

The incident happened around 5 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 29, near the Cape Coral Yacht Club and involved an MTI 390 powerboat that flipped while carrying at least four people onboard. All four were sent into the water.

Published on: November 26, 2025

Man Dies Following Dive at Florida Keys Shipwreck. What to Know.

By Leesfield & Partners

A 50-year-old man has died after losing consciousness following a scuba dive at a Key West shipwreck over the weekend, according to local media.

Nicholas James Strazzulla, a certified diving instructor of Inverness, Florida, lost consciousness following the 150-to-200-foot dive to the USNS Hoyt S. Vanderberg. The former missile tracking ship was intentionally sunk nearly seven miles south of Key West in 2009 to be used as an artificial reef, according to the Miami Herald.

He was brought back to the dive boat and others in the group he was with performed CPR on him, officials told local media. He died at the Lower Keys Medical Center.