Family sues man they say left woman to die on I-95
His negligent driving caused her to fall off motorcycle on first date, suit alleges
A New York man is being sued by the parents of a Fort Lauderdale woman they say died while on a date with him on a borrowed motorcycle. Her body was run over multiple times on Interstate 95.
Jennifer Amy St. Clair met Miles McChesney on Tinder, an online dating site. For their first date on Dec. 6, they joined two other couples for a group motorcycle ride on Harley-Davidsons to visit three bars in downtown Delray Beach, according to the lawsuit filed Friday in Broward County civil court.
McChesney is accused in the lawsuit of being impaired by alcohol and of negligently driving the motorcycle, a 2001 Harley-Davidson Road King, causing St. Clair to fall off. McChesney stopped briefly but drove away without helping her, the lawsuit alleges.
St. Clair, 33, who worked as a server in restaurants and lived in Fort Lauderdale, was found dead in the southbound lanes of I-95 in Pompano Beach.
“We believe she was struck by as many as nine vehicles,” said Todd Falzone, the attorney for St. Clair’s parents, Becky St. Clair and Robert Burns.
Falzone said Friday that McChesney, 34, of Schenectady, N.Y.,
“The lawsuit is to help us subpoena witnesses and to compel testimony.” Todd Falzone, the attorney for Jennifer St. Clair’s family
was visiting a cousin in Fort Lauderdale when he met their daughter.
The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating the crash and has not named McChesney in connection with St. Clair’s death.
On Friday, FHP Lt. Alvaro Feola said, “The only thing we can confirm is that she was a passenger on a motorcycle and ended up on the roadway. FHP is still investigating how she ended up on the roadway.”
McChesney retained attorney Russell Cormican in regard to the FHP investigation.
“It was a tragic event, but I’m unable to comment at this time because I haven’t seen the lawsuit yet,” Cormican said.
The Broward County Medical Examiner’s Office said Friday that St. Clair suffered multiple blunt force injuries, but the manner of death — how she died — was not determined by the autopsy examination. Toxicology test results were pending.
“The lawsuit is to help us subpoena witnesses and to compel testimony,” Falzone said. He declined to say the sources of the information his law firm’s investigation has found so far that the lawsuit is based upon.
McChesney had borrowed the motorcycle that night, Falzone said, and the owner of the Harley, John E. Lewis, also is being sued on a charge of negligence. A message left for Lewis wasn’t returned.
On Saturday, a celebration of St. Clair’s life will be held at Scarano Funeral Home, 6300 Stirling Road, Davie. The service, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., will be open to the public.
Falzone asked anyone who wants to share information with the law firm to call 954-587-8423.
The Florida Highway Patrol asks anyone with knowledge of the incident to call Broward County Crime Stoppers, at 954-493-8477. That organization accepts anonymous tips and pays up to $3,000 for information that leads to an arrest.