Fire Chief and JSO Officer Face Charges in Fatal Crashes

JACKSONVILLE, FL -- Two fatal crashes in the span of two months, one involving a JSO officer, and the other involving a JFRD district chief, will lead to criminal charges against the two drivers.

District Fire Chief Adrian Johnson will be charged with culpable negligence in a crash that killed a man on the Northside last November.

Officer Marcus Kilpatrick is facing a similar charge, plus giving false information to investigators in a fatal crash on Merrill Road last January.

Kilpatrick was responding to a call on Merrill Road on January 14 when his police car hit a truck driven by 86-year-old Matthew Ogden Jr.

Kilpatrick told investigators his emergency lights were on, but witnesses at the scene disputed that.

The officer, according to authorities, was traveling at speeds pushing 100 miles per hour, but slowed down to 60 miles per hour when he hit Ogden's truck. Ogden had just turned onto Merrill Road.

The fatal crash involving District Fire Chief Johnson happened on November 21 of last year at 21st and Liberty. Johnson's SUV collided with a car driven by 75-year-old Howard H. Corrigan.

Authorities say Johnson was driving without a siren on. Assistant State Attorney Mark Borello said speed was a factor.

The State Attorney's Office says both Kilpatrick and Johnson will be served with notices to appear on the misdemeanor charges next week.

The offenses are punishable with jail time up to one year, but the State Attorney's Office doesn't believe jail is appropriate in these cases.