PANAMA CITY, Fla. (AP) - A judge has found a Florida police officer not guilty of a charge of driving carelessly in the death of a pedestrian.
Panama City Police Officer Mark Walter Bohrer appeared Tuesday in civil traffic court. He had been cited after 53-year-old Craig Finch of Wewahitchka died of injuries suffered in the March 30 collision.
According to a News Herald report , Bay County Judge Thomas Welch granted a motion of acquittal after a day of testimony from law enforcement officers and eyewitnesses.
Florida Highway Patrol determined that Finch fell into the road just as the 36-year-old officer attempted to make a left turn in his patrol car. Authorities said dashcam footage corroborated investigators’ findings.
There is no crosswalk at the site of the crash. Finch was pronounced dead at a hospital.