Florida wrong-way driver charges dismissed in crash that injured UCF student

ORLANDO, Fla. - A University of Central Florida student is still recovering after a wrong-way driver hit him while he was taking an Uber home back in October.

"I was just on my way home from a night out with my friends, and instead of driving that night, I decided to get a ride on the way home," Marcus Frutchey told FOX 35 News.

He only remembers very few things about what happened next.

"I remember smelling the smoke of the car and feeling the impact, and I had an idea of what I thought happened, but obviously, after the fact, I was cut out of the car," he said.

The crash happened on Oct. 29, 2023, just after 7 a.m. on Interstate 4 near Central Florida Parkway. Marcus Frutchey ended up in the trauma unit at Orlando Health. He broke more than a dozen ribs, along with cutting open his liver, kidney, spleen, intestines, colon, and hands, just to name a few.

"I mean that phone call. I still can't; I don't think any mother should get that phone call in the morning," Sandra Frutchey recalled the moment she got a notification on her phone that something was wrong.

The woman accused of driving the wrong way told troopers she fell asleep. Troopers handed down citations for driving on the wrong side of a divided highway, possession of an open container of alcohol, and misrepresentation of insurance. During a December court appearance, a judge dismissed the wrong-way driving charges, and the driver left with fines for the other two citations.

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"It's concerning that that's what happens to someone that does something like that," Marcus said.

When asked what he would have said to the judge in the courtroom if he had a chance to speak, he said, "I don't think I'd have much to say besides list off my medical history and lift my shirt to let them know what exactly happened to me."

Marcus' mother, Sandra, still can't wrap her head around what happened in court. She wishes the justice system had done better for her son.

"The trooper told us, she said she fell asleep, and I'm like, where's that charge? That if you were driving so tired you could fall asleep."

As for the charges, the driver by Florida Highway Patrol stands by their charges. In a statement to FOX 35:

"As for charging the driver for reckless driving, her actions were not of a willful or wanton disregard by acting consciously in disregard or acting with a reckless indifference to the consequences. The defendant must be aware of her conduct, which in this case she fell asleep and was not aware. After a thorough investigation, the Trooper issued the applicable charges, which were also in agreement by the Trooper’s Sergeant.  The crash report also listed that the injuries were serious bodily injury/ incapacitating. The citation for driving the wrong way also specified serious injuries and property damage. As for in the courtroom, the judge makes the final decision on the final punishment and the innocence or guilt for issued citations."

For now, Marcus is focused on his next surgery, driving again, and getting back to normal life.

"Appearance-wise, it doesn't bother me. You know, in a weird way, it's a badge of honor as to what I've been through and how tough I am. If someone wants to laugh or look at me weird from my scars, it's not going to bother me. They have no idea what I've been through to be where I am right now."