Key West Injury Lawyer Blog
A North Carolina woman was killed, three others were injured and one man faces charges following a boat crash in the Florida Keys Friday.
A 21-foot motorboat carrying four people hit an anchored 34-foot sailboat Friday around 8 p.m. in Florida Bay off mile marker 96 in Key Largo, according to reporting from the Miami Herald. All four people aboard the motorboat were ejected following the crash. Three people were rescued from the water with injuries. The body of 24-year-old Sydney Cole was pulled from the water.
At least one of the three injured, Lillian Cole, 58, of Oakland Park, was airlifted to a Miami-Dade County hospital in critical condition. The boat was being operated by Guy Erdman, 61, also of Oakland Park, the night of the crash, according to the Herald. No charges have been filed against him as of Monday.
Erdman’s son, Christopher Erdman, 31, was uninjured in the incident but has since been charged with one count of felony battery and one count of felony aggravated assault. The charges are linked to an alleged incident in which police say Christopher Erdman attacked a man on the sailboat who has been identified as William Milner, 71, of Yorktown, Virginia. Also on the sailboat was Milner’s wife, Paula Milner, 70. Neither were injured in the crash, FWC officials told reporters.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is investigating the crash. Alcohol is alleged to be a factor in the incident, according to the Herald.
Leesfield & Partners
As a personal injury law firm with nearly five decades of experience in a state that is considered to be the boating capital of the United States, Leesfield & Partners attorneys have seen a wide array of boating cases. From negligent supervision that resulted in a minor plaintiff losing a leg to a fatal crash that killed a young father-to-be. These devastating incidents happen most often in the summer months when Florida’s scorchingly sunny days lend to beautiful times on the water.
While having more people on the water can certainly be a factor, alcohol and limited visibility during nighttime boating can also play a role in these disastrous outcomes. It is through the firm’s experience helping families navigate fatal cases and their devastating consequences that Leesfield & Partners regularly posts safety advisories on its digital sign. Situated along Miami’s busiest highway and viewed by thousands of commuters each day, the sign alerts boaters to potential hazards on the water and urges them to be safe.
Boating Stats in Florida
The latest available data from an annual report from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission shows that there were 659 reportable crashes in the state in 2023. Of those crashes, the most common cause was a collision with a fixed object, which can include objects such as a concrete dock, pier and or channel marker.
Monroe County and Miami-Dade County, where Leesfield has two of three offices statewide, were the areas with the most collisions, according to the FWC report.
Previous Cases
Leesfield & Partners previously represented the family of a 20-year-old woman who was killed when the boat she was on crashed into a concrete dock. The woman and other passengers were catapulted into the water in the collision. Attorneys with the firm discovered that the operator of the boat was not only drinking but was also speeding at night.
That case was settled for over $1.3 million.
The firm previously handled a boating case involving a foreign resort that resulted in an $800,000 recovery.
A boat tour drowning resulted in $575,000 recovered for the family of a man who died as a result of the company’s negligence.
Another case handled by the firm involved a young father-to-be who was lobster diving when a water law enforcement officer who negligently ignored divers-down flag laws got too close to where he was diving.
That case, handled by Trial Lawyer Bernardo Pimentel II, resulted in the max, capped recovery for the man’s family.
Leesfield & Partners also has decades of experience litigating jet ski accident cases. In the last six years in this practice area alone – which Partner and Trial Lawyer Justin B. Shapiro has previously said is the recreational water activity that produces the most injuries and deaths in Florida – the firm has secured over $10 million for injured clients and grieving families.
In a case involving a Californian family in Florida on vacation, Leesfield & Partners secured a substantial settlement. The family had hired jet ski tour guides, who were supposed to lead them through the waters and assist with operating the machinery. However, the guides repeatedly sped away from the family and failed to warn them about the strong currents around a narrow bridge opening.
As a result, our client violently crashed into a concrete bridge piling and was severely injured.
The firm previously handled a jet ski case involving a crash between a boat and a jet ski that resulted in a $935,000 recovery.
One jet ski rental company negligently failed in their duty to ensure that all customers understood their safety briefing and short instruction before setting out on the water. A French-speaking tourist did not and, as a result, crashed into and killed our client’s wife on the water.
An over $2.8 million recovery was obtained for the family in that case.
