MERRITT ISLAND, Fla. – A Brevard County deputy and a driver who struck her both failed to yield at a busy Merritt Island intersection, leading to a rollover crash that hospitalized the deputy, according to the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office.
Dashboard camera video from after 6 p.m. the night of June 9 shows Deputy Kaitlyn Applegate’s Ford Explorer approaching the intersection of Courtenay Parkway and Highway 520.
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The deputy tried crossing the intersection with her sirens activated as the light was red.
The sheriff’s office said Applegate was responding to an emergency call.
Investigators said the traffic on her left yielded, but as she passed traffic coming from her right, the other driver crashed into her.
The sheriff’s office said Deputy Applegate was taken to the hospital but not seriously hurt.
The other driver — Jason Kelley — told News 6 Friday that he wasn’t hurt and that he hadn’t been ticketed, either.
Kelley told the sheriff’s office he went through the intersection because he had the green light, and he never saw the deputy or her vehicle’s flashing lights.
A witness interviewed in the report told investigators both drivers probably couldn’t see each other because the traffic at the intersection likely obstructed their view.
The damage to the sheriff’s office’s vehicle is estimated at $20,000.
The sheriff’s office said Friday that the department wasn’t available for an interview about the investigation.
Kelley said he’s hired an attorney and is seeking compensation for the damages to his vehicle.
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