Probation, suspended license for man, 78, charged in 2023 hit-and-run fatality

Before his change of plea hearing began Thursday afternoon, James Calvin Newson told the judge he had something very important to say.

Sitting beside his lawyer, the 78-year-old Ocala man said his vehicle side-swiped a speeding motorcycle and he stopped to see if anyone was injured. Newson said another vehicle slowed down, and continued driving with no one saying anything.

Not seeing anyone, Newson and his passenger left and he went home. Newson said he doesn't understand why he's charged with leaving the scene of crash involving a fatality.

Circuit Judge Robert Hodges asked the elderly man if he wanted to go ahead with the hearing, and Newson said yes.

"I want to get this over with. It's been on my mind," a weary Newson said.

Plea deal

In a negotiated deal between prosecutors and the man's lawyer, Sean Gravel from the Public Defender's Office, Newson agreed to accept a reduced charge of leaving the scene of a crash with serious bodily injures. Assistant State Attorney Adam Smith was present at the hearing for the prosecution.

The agreement calls for Newson to be sentenced to 60 months of probation. His driver's license will be suspended for three years. Newson pleaded no contest to the charge.

Newson told the judge the incident affected him so much, he had a heart attack several weeks ago. Newson came to court with a walker with wheels. The judge told Newson he could sit at the defense table and was not required to stand during the proceedings.

Newson said all he wants to do is go fishing. He asked if his boat, seized by Ocala Police Department officers investigating the 2023 crash, will be released. The judge told Newson the lawyers will make arrangements for him to get his boat back.

Information about the crash

Police officials said in late February 2023, 24-year-old Joseph Ruiz-Figueroa was riding a Harley-Davidson motorcycle northbound on Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue when a Ford pickup truck hauling a boat trailer with a boat turned from Northwest 22nd Street and into the path of the rider.

Officers said the driver, later identified as Newson, drove away. Authorities said Newson dropped off his passenger and went home.

When officers interviewed Newson, he told them he felt something and heard a noise, but since he did not see anything, he continued driving.

Arrested, Newson was taken to the county jail. He was released within hours of his arrest after posting a $15,000 bond.

Prosecutors said Ruiz-Figueroa's motorcycle was traveling 54.7 mph to 60.3 mph in a 40 mph zone when the crash occurred.

About the victim

In an interview after the crash, the victim's father, Jose Ruiz, told a Star Banner reporter that his son was a good child who lived in Ocala for three years.

Ruiz said his son was born in Kansas. The young man later moved to Puerto Rico. He re-located to Illinois, where he attended high school, his father said.

Ruiz-Figueroa was on the wrestling and basketball teams while in high school, his father said.

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Ruiz said his son was working at the time of his death and wanted to be an aircraft mechanic. He said his son had the motorcycle for three or four years.

Contact Austin L. Miller at [email protected]

This article originally appeared on Ocala Star-Banner: Lawyers agree on plea deal for elderly man in 2023 hit-and-run death