A Gainesville woman who struck and killed a pedestrian in a Butler Plaza parking lot on Sept. 15, 2023, was sentenced to 45 years in prison on Tuesday.
According to a State Attorney’s Office press release, Judge James Colaw sentenced Jaileen Damaris Pagan, 27, to 45 years for vehicular homicide, five years for leaving the scene of an accident involving death, and no valid driver’s license.
Pagan was found guilty on July 31 for hitting and killing pedestrian Gary Pugh at Butler Plaza on Sept. 15, 2023. Following the incident, the Gainesville Police Department (GPD) used nearby security surveillance footage to identify the Hyundai Sonata connected with the incident and asked for the public’s help with information on the collision and to locate the vehicle.
GPD investigators located the vehicle on Sept. 30, 2023, at 3445 W. University Ave. and identified the owner as Pagan, who was previously arrested on Sept. 20, 2023, for petit theft from the Butler Plaza Walmart, which occurred prior to the hit-and-run.
May this murderer rot in jail.
Rarely do those who hit and kill pedestrians or cyclists and leave the scene/leaving them to die on the road alone, without any help… rarely do these perpetrators receive more than a slap on the wrist. This heartless person’s actions were especially egregious, and we are all much safer having this perp off the streets of our community. I appreciate Judge Colaw for his courage in sentencing this person appropriately. 45 years locked up (with people who think the same way this perpetrator thinks) approaches justice.