Tampa man pleads guilty in DUI crash that killed pedestrian

TAMPA, Fla. - A Tampa man pleaded guilty Wednesday morning to driving drunk and killing a pedestrian two years ago. 

In a Tampa courtroom, defendant Stuart Cobb agreed to an open plea on a DUI manslaughter charge. 

Prosecutor Darrell Dirks said Cob was driving drunk on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Williams Road in Tampa on September 12, 2021. That's when he said Cobb stuck and killed a pedestrian walking on the road – and kept driving. 

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Minutes later, though, prosecutors said Cobb parked his car at a nearby Walmart and did something unusual. 

"The defendant returned to the scene about 30 or 40 minutes after the crash," explained Dirks.

Officials said he admitted to being behind the wheel and causing the deadly crash. Now, two years later, Cobb cut a deal with prosecutors. 

In exchange for a guilty plea, the state dropped one criminal charge against him, leaving the scene of a crash involving death. Under an open plea, the judge will now decide Cobb’s fate.

 His sentencing hearing is scheduled for April 1. 

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