Screws sentenced in University Avenue hit-and-run
BY JENNIFER CABRERA
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Daniel Lowell Screws, Jr., 39, has been sentenced to 270 days in the Alachua County Jail and 5 years of probation in a plea deal for a hit-and-run last March.
Screws was arrested on March 19, 2022, and charged with failing to stop at the scene of a crash involving serious injury. At approximately 5:20 p.m. on March 17, a pickup truck driven by Screws was traveling eastbound on W. University Avenue and made an abrupt turn northbound onto NW 23rd Street into the path of a moped-type scooter traveling westbound. The scooter, which had the right-of-way, collided with the truck in the intersection, where the scooter driver, Mackenzie Mullen, sustained serious injuries. After a GPD officer arrived to render aid, Screws fled the scene. He was identified by license plate information found on the body-worn camera of an officer at the scene.
Due to a conflict of interest, State Attorney Brian Kramer requested that the case be assigned to a different State Attorney, so the governor assigned it to State Attorney Melissa Nelson of the Fourth Judicial Circuit.
On March 3, 2023, the formal charge of leaving a crash with serious bodily injury was amended to add a lesser charge of leaving a crash with bodily injury. Screws entered a plea of guilty to the lesser charge in a plea deal that dropped the initial charge, withheld adjudication of guilt, and sentenced Screws to 270 days in the Alachua County Jail and 5 years of probation. In addition, Screws agreed to three years of driver’s license revocation, participation in a victim impact panel as a condition of license reinstatement, a 12-hour advanced driver improvement school, court costs, and restitution of as much as $50,000 to Mullen, with $10,000 paid up front. Judge William Davis accepted the plea deal.
Mackenzie might have done better with Dan Newlin, although it is hard to get blood from a turnip.
This was criminal court. He can still ‘put the Screws’ to Screws (and his insurance company) in civil court.
Unfortunately no insurance of course and as fartknocker above said “can’t get blood from a turnip”
Another plea deal to a lesser charge. Obviously he has no regard to human life since he fled the scene knowing someone was injuried by his actions. I hope Screws holds up to his name and gets it every day he is in jail.
He really screwesed up this time.