HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — Over the roar of U.S. 301 traffic Friday night came a call nine years in the making—as those who loved Andrew Joseph III gathered to honor his memory.
"Hardest feeling in the world to have to go to the graveyard to visit your child," said the teen's father, Andrew Joseph Jr.
The 14-year-old died in 20-4 after being hit by a car while crossing Interstate 4 to catch a ride home from the Florida State Fair.
His family says at the time, he'd been wrongfully kicked out of the fair by the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office.
And in September 2022, a jury agreed—after they awarded the Joseph family 15 million dollars in damages for their wrongful death lawsuit against HCSO.
"He wasn't a kid that was wildin' at the fair. He wasn't involved in any gang activity, he didn't have a fight that night there was no weapons involved," said Joseph Jr.
It's a sobering reality that comes as the Florida State Fair rolls out some policy changes for unaccompanied kids.
Starting this year, after 6 p.m., anyone 17 years old or younger has to be accompanied by an adult 21 or older.
"How we're enforcing it is at the gate, when they gain entry. The children get in for free; the adults have to pay a fee to get in," said Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister.
Sheriff Chronister adds that they're doing this to crack down on the number of rowdy kids they have to kick out.
"Over the last couple of years, we saw the number of arrests and ejections going up. 167 ejections, and 136 of them were on student night. Six arrests, 4 of them on student night," he said.
But the Joseph family sees things differently.
"Andrew joseph III influenced those changes, first off. And it is change; we appreciate change, but there's always room for more," said the teen's mother, Deanna Joseph.
To increase safety, the Josephs are calling for all guns to be banned at the fair and for more crosswalks to be installed along U.S. 301 so people can walk to the fair safely.
And in the midst of their fight for change, they say they hope the community will also remember Andrew this way.
"He was our firstborn son. He was full of laughter. He was a protector of his baby sister," said Deanna Joseph.
The family says this vigil will be one of many events they hold throughout the weekend to honor Andrew's memory.
