Woman, 76, speeds away from hit-and-run crash with other driver on hood

A 76-year-old Palm Coast woman was arrested Saturday, accused of speeding away from the scene of a crash with another driver clutching to the hood of her SUV, according to the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office.

Deputies responded around 2 p.m. to Belle Terre Parkway, south of Palm Coast Parkway, from where Cheryl Henderson had allegedly driven away southbound after being involved in a nearby crash. Witnesses advised Henderson had sped off while a man — the driver of the pickup truck she reportedly struck — was on the hood of her vehicle, according to the sheriff’s office.

Deputies were told the man had pulled his vehicle in front of Henderson’s SUV to prevent her from leaving the scene. The man stood in Henderson’s path and told her to stop as she then maneuvered her SUV toward him, prompting the man to jump onto the hood, deputies said.

Henderson drove as fast as 50 mph down Belle Terre Parkway, stopping around 2 miles away near Pritchard Drive as she was forced off the road by a good Samaritan, according to deputies.

The good Samaritan at the scene of the crash — who asked to remain anonymous — had called police before hopping into his car to follow Henderson down the road.

He followed her through multiple intersections, planning to block traffic in case the victim fell off the car.

“It was really unbelievable because, I mean, this person who’s dangling feet are inches from the ground as she’s driving,” he told News 6.

He eventually realized that he needed to stop her, so he drove ahead of her car and gradually moved into her lane, slowing down and forcing her to pull over.

“I kind of just angled my vehicle far enough in front of her to where that guy wasn’t in danger but kind of impeded her from going forward and just drifted her off into the soils,” he said.

When interviewed, Henderson told deputies that she did not stop because she was out of gas, the sheriff’s office stated. She further claimed that she was trying to pull over during those 2 miles, observing the man on her hood, but could not, authorities said.

Henderson faces charges of leaving the scene of a crash involving property damage and aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, records show. She was issued $20,000 bond, later posting it and being released the following evening from the Flagler County Inmate Facility.

It was not described in the sheriff’s office’s report whether the man who held onto the hood was injured. Sheriff Rick Staly said in a statement that the man avoided suffering serious injuries.