A young college student sent her family a touching final message before police say she was killed by a drunk driver who was on the wrong side of the road.
Lauryn Akey, 21, was on her way home from a friend’s wedding in Charlotte County in the early hours of May 17. She had just bought gas and texted family members that she loved them and would be home soon.
But Dennis Olson, 53, was driving his F-150 truck in the opposite direction of traffic on the northbound lanes of Interstate 75 before he slammed head-on into Akey’s Honda CR-V shortly after 1am, according to Florida Highway Patrol.
The student was ejected from her car and died at the scene. When authorities drew Olson’s blood, they determined he had a BAC of 0.222, which is nearly three times the legal limit.
Troopers said a witness had helped Olson out of his truck and noted he had slurred speech. When they questioned Olson, he reportedly admitted he had been driving the vehicle and said he was having a ‘bad night.’
He said he had been returning from the Sip & Sizzle restaurant in Fort Meyers, where he claimed to have had just one glass of wine.
The 53-year-old’s arrest affidavit, which was reviewed by Law & Crime, also noted that he had sideswiped a Kia Optima when first turning into the opposite direction of traffic.
He reportedly injured a woman and two children from Arcadia in that crash, causing one of the children to require surgery.
Lauryn Akey, 21, was killed by an alleged drunk driver going the opposite direction of traffic around 1am on May 17
Dennis Olson, 53, has been charged with DUI manslaughter and vehicular homicide for allegedly crashing into Akey. He is being held without bond in the Charlotte County Jail
Florida Highway Patrol video showed the moment Olson allegedly made the illegal turn and drove the wrong way
Olson was booked into the Charlotte County Jail on May 17 and charged with DUI manslaughter and vehicular homicide, according to county arrest records.
He was originally given a $150,000 bond for the vehicular homicide charge, but a judge last week ruled that Olson be held in custody without bond until his trial.
The judge agreed with prosecutors’ arguments that Olson presented a risk to the community after they cited a prior DUI conviction in Minnesota, where the man also drove down the wrong side of the road.
The state attorney’s office has said that the alleged drunk driver could be hit with additional charges related to the separate crash that injured the Arcadia woman and children. Olson’s next court date is scheduled for June 15.
Akey was a student at the University of South Florida, where she would have graduated next year with a degree in exercise science, her mother, Melinda Mucho, told reporters outside the courthouse where Olson was denied bond last week.
The mother said her daughter wanted to become a nurse and that ‘she would have done amazing things.’
‘Her life was just on the horizon. Her life was just getting started with her boyfriend. She was going to graduate next year, and I want everyone to see her and feel that,’ Mucho told reporters.
Friends, family members and the young woman’s boyfriend all shared heartbreaking tributes on social media in the days after she died. They started the hashtag #lovelikelauryn to honor her memory.
Just before she died, Akey had stopped for gas and texted her family that she loved them and would be home soon. She is pictured (left) with her brother and mother
Akey was a student at South Florida University, where she would have graduated next year with a degree in exercise science. She is pictured with her boyfriend, Garrett Day
Akey had dreams of becoming a nurse. A heartbreaking tribute shared online by her brother, Zack Akey (pictured with his sister) said that she was ‘going to save lives’
‘She belonged where the water meets the sky. With her pink fishing pole, boat days, music, salty air, sunsets and the people she loved most,’ Akey’s mother wrote on Instagram.
‘A drunk driver took her from us far too soon… don’t drink and drive…please! Fish on, baby girl. We’ll find you in every sunset on the water.’
The student’s brother, Zack Akey, wrote: ‘I cannot even believe I am making this post. It still doesn’t even feel real.
‘Lauryn, I love you and will forever miss you. You were the best of all of us. Even though I hate Taylor swift, I will now listen to her music in memory of you,’ he continued.
‘You were going to save lives and be a nurse! Your smile lit up every room you entered, and you were always able to lift someone’s spirits, inspire them, or be a shoulder to cry on.’
Akey’s boyfriend, Garrett Day, wrote: ‘Rest in paradise my love, I hope your holding your pink fishing pole tight catching every fish you ever wanted to. Until I get to see you again hun.’
