Alachua County sheriff’s deputy Gary Boothby had finished working a shift before he received the call.
It was April 2010, and shortly after Boothby returned home, he felt his phone vibrate. He picked it up, not knowing that on the other line a co-worker would tell Boothby that his 17-year-old son was involved in a car accident.
“That was the kind of phone call you never ever want to get as a parent,” he said.
Brandon Boothby was in a friend’s car when it hit a tree in Newberry.
Gary Boothby said the doctors would later tell him that because Brandon was wearing his seatbelt, he survived. The driver fell into a coma but also survived.
Teens nationwide are not as fortunate.
A new study released by the Governors Highway Safety Association revealed a 19-percent increase in teen driving deaths among 16- and 17-year-olds. The increase was shown within the first six months of 2011 and 2012.
The study also revealed states with driving fatalities have decreased. Florida was part of that group. The state had one of the highest number of fatalities in 2011, according to the study.
Florida Highway Patrol spokeswoman Sergeant Tracy Hisler-Pace said in 2011, Alachua County had one teen driving death. In 2012, there were four deaths reported.
ASO spokesman Art Forgey said the decreased deaths could be a result of teen driving programs and Florida’s graduated license program.
As part of the Florida Sheriffs Association’s Teen Driver Challenge program, the county allows students to learn how to drive in the classroom as well as on the driving course.
Florida’s graduated license program provides stages for young drivers to fulfill before attaining their full license at 18.
Gary Boothby said social media could be another contributing factor in the decrease in Florida teen driving deaths.
“Now that we have social media, the kids saw the car. They saw the pictures of it,” he said.
Gary Boothby said even though the doctors told him Brandon, now 20, may never be able to walk again, his son proved them wrong.
“Somebody tells you they don’t know if your son is going to make it or not — that’s just, I can’t explain that by words. It’s just a bad, bad feeling,” he said. “And for him to come out of it and do so well ... I think it’s amazing.”
