Tampa man faces DUI manslaughter charge in fatal October crash

TAMPA — A 30-year-old man was arrested on a charge of DUI manslaughter Monday stemming from a fatal October traffic crash near Temple Terrace.

A Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office investigation found that Jason Cedric Lucas, 40, had a blood-alcohol level of 0.09 more than three hours after deputies said he crashed a Jeep Grand Cherokee into a tree, killing a woman and injuring another man who were riding with him. State law presumes a driver is impaired at a level greater than 0.08.

The crash happened the evening of Oct. 27 near Renald Boulevard and Gadsden Drive, in the Orange River Estates subdivision. Witnesses told sheriff's deputies that the Jeep was speeding and weaved around another car at a speed hump before veering off the road and hitting the tree.

According to a search warrant, Lucas was hospitalized with severe injuries after the crash. So was backseat passenger Bernard Fleming, 33, who fractured his spine, the warrant said. The front passenger, Stephanie Rose Woltmann, 24, was killed.

In an interview in a hospital room, according to the warrant, Fleming told deputies he and Lucas had been drinking and smoking marijuana throughout the day before the crash.

Deputies who interviewed Lucas after the crash said he smelled of alcohol and had bloodshot, watery eyes. He agreed to have his blood drawn for testing.

Records show that Lucas was arrested at the county jail on Monday, an indication that he may have turned himself in. He also faces charges of DUI with serious bodily injury, driving with a suspended license and attaching a tag not assigned to vehicle. The warrant said the Jeep he drove bore the license plate of a different vehicle.

Shortly after he was booked, Lucas was released from the jail Monday after posting $10,000 bail.