News

Actions

Crossing guard honored after being hit & killed

Posted at 5:00 AM, May 20, 2016
and last updated 2016-05-20 09:52:31-04
A man who spent his life protecting the people of Clearwater is being honored on the 2-year anniversary of his death.
 
Crossing guard Doug Carey was hit and killed by a driver at the corner of Belcher Road and Gulf-to-Bay Boulevard on the morning of May 20, 2014.
 
Authorities say the driver of a Cadillac was seen on a traffic camera going through a red light, hitting a car, and then Carey.
 
Carey was also a retired Clearwater Police officer who served the city for 20 years.
 
At 7:20 a.m. a memorial wreath will be placed near Skycrest Elementary at Cleveland Street and Corona Avenue.
 
At 8:40 a.m., a second memorial wreath will be placed at the northwest corner of Belcher Road Gulf-to-Bay Boulevard.
 
After the deadly crash, the city studied the intersection, finding it to be the second-most dangerous intersection for crashes in the city, and made changes in hopes of alleviating the trend.
 
Red light camera data showed that in April 2014, the month before Carey's death, more than 300 people ran the red light at the intersection of Belcher and Gulf-to-Bay Boulevard. 
 
After the crash, the school district added three new bus stops for kids who attend Oak Grove Elementary so that students don't have to cross the street in that intersection.
 
The driver accused of killing Carey, Julious Johnson, 30, was charged with vehicular manslaughter among other crimes. Johnson bonded out of jail. Authorities are tracking him through his ankle monitor.