Driver involved in deadly hit-and-run agrees to plea deal, avoids jail time

TAMPA, Fla. - A family's love, compassion and forgiveness was on full display in a Tampa Courtroom, as defendant Ericka Boxtha agreed to a plea deal in her fatal hit-and-run case.

Prosecutors said Boxtha hit and killed a 41-year-old pedestrian, David Olsen, while driving on October 2, 2019, on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard near Bethlehem Road in Dover. She was driving her 2007 Toyota four-door sedan at the time of the crash.

Prosecutor Nathaniel Mendoza said instead of stopping to help, she took off. 

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"She then left the scene. She later called law enforcement and returned to the scene and cooperated fully. Still, she did initially leave the scene," explained Mendoza.

Now, more than three years after that deadly collision, Boxtha could not pass up on the plea offer presented to her by the state.

She pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of leaving the scene of a crash with an injury.

Instead of jail time, the prosecutor offered her 60 months of probation. They also agreed to withhold adjudication, which means she won’t be convicted of this offense or have a criminal record.    

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The Olsen family expressed forgiveness for the young defendant and agreed to the light sentence. 

"They just want her to move on and have a life and to be happy and learn from this experience. That’s the main thing," explained Mendoza.

Boxtha never addressed the family or the court. Instead, she was fingerprinted and left the courtroom quietly with a second chance at life.