Victim in Hit and Run Crash Identified as Doctoral Graduate

The woman killed by a hit and run driver while on a bicycle near USF has been identified as Kayoko Ishizuka, 30, of Tampa.  Police believe that they have found the vehicle involved in the accident.  A CV posted on the USF Health website, Ishizuka was a recent biochemistry Ph.D. graduate and was working as a research associate at USF's department of molecular medicine.  The accident happened at approximately 1:40 a.m. near the intersection of University Square Drive and Bruce B. Downs Blvd.  This intersection is across from the USF campus.

Hit and run accidents with pedestrians or bicyclists often leave the pedestrian or bicyclist for dead.  The idea behind stopping at the scene of an accident is that there is a duty of the motorist, regardless of fault, to initiate a call for help.  Regardless of fault, if the motorist involved in an accident does this, the injured person has a greater likelihood of survival.  If the motorist does not, the chances of survival diminish.  Even if the accident was not the motorist's fault, the motorist can be held responsible in civil court for a wrongful death simply because they failed to stop and initiate a call for help.  Doing so is also a crime (first degree felony involving a death case).  At Moody Law, a Central Florida personal injury or wrongful death attorney can help you with your accident case if you were injured or a lost a loved one.  A consultation with one of our Central Florida personal injury or wrongful death attorneys is free.  The call is free.