University of Miami football player arrested, charged with three counts of vehicular homicide
Miami Hurricanes player charged in deadly Largo crash
A University of Miami football player is now charged in a crash that killed three people in Largo. Kailey Tracy reports.
LARGO, Fla. - A University of Miami football player is now charged in a crash that killed three people in Largo back in May.
What we know:
Largo police say Adarius Hayes, 20, a linebacker for the Miami Hurricanes, turned himself in on Friday. He is charged with three counts of vehicular homicide and one count of reckless driving with serious injury.
Investigators say Hayes was speeding and weaving through traffic in a Dodge Durango on May 10 when he slammed into a Kia Soul at Ridge Road and Orange View Drive in Largo.
Jabari Solomon, 10, Charlie Solomon Rivera, 4, and Gail Price, 78, all died. Herbert Rivera, 58, who suffered serious injuries during the crash, survived. Rivera, the boys’ father, was sitting in the front passenger seat.
Mugshot of Adarius Hayes. Courtesy: Pinellas County Jail.
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What they're saying:
"Hayes made a rapid and dangerous maneuver, changing lanes from the curb lane to the median lane, crossing three lanes of traffic while overtaking other vehicles," Largo Police Chief Mike Loux said.
"Moments later, Hayes abruptly re-entered the curb lane, again, crossing three lanes without signaling. At a point, Hayes' vehicle collided with the Kia Soul driven by Ms. Price, who was lawfully executing a left-hand turn west on the Orange View Drive," he said.
Police say Hayes was driving nearly 80-miles-per-hour in a 40-mph zone just seconds before the crash.
"You have the death of three innocent people that were just driving, traveling on the roadways," Chief Loux said. "So yes, they're very serious charges."
"Search warrants were obtained for the vehicles … effectively the black box for the car to give us information on how far the rate of speed the vehicle, the rate, of acceleration, deceleration," Chief Loux said.
Adarius Hayes, a linebacker for the Miami Hurricanes.
Chief Loux said investigators also worked with the State Attorney’s Office, and relied on witness interviews and nearby surveillance video to determine what happened.
Dig deeper:
Friends of the victims said they’d just picked up a birthday cake to celebrate Jabari and were just 50 feet from home. They said Rivera is relieved and happy that Hayes has been charged, but calls it the first step towards justice. Rivera is still recovering from his injuries.
Court records show Hayes’ criminal history includes a few traffic infractions, like speeding 20-29 mph over the limit two months before the May crash, improper lane change in 2023 and careless driving in 2023.
Deputies booked Hayes in the Pinellas County Jail around 10:50 a.m. Friday. He was released around 2:15 p.m. on $350,000 bond the same day.
Police say this is still an active, ongoing investigation.
The Source: Information for this story was provided by the Largo Police Department.