ORLANDO, Fla. -- Early Friday morning, a man with a long driving record admitted he had been drinking when he crashed into an SUV, causing it to flip over, and then ran away from the scene.

The driver of the SUV hit at Gore Street was in bad shape. Police said the man who hit him is a habitual traffic offender. They said he ran the red light and, when he realized what happened, he got out of his car, took off his shoes and started running.

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SLIDESHOW: Images From The Scene Of The Crash
RAW VIDEO: Driver Tells Police Why He Ran From Scene Of Accident

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"I was scared," Jerry Dean Ash said.

Ash, 24, gave Orlando police officers a lot of excuses when they finally caught up with him more than a mile away from the accident he caused.

"Officer, I know it sounds like I'm a bad guy and alcohol does stuff to you, but I really hope they're alright," Ash said as he was being walked back to the scene of the accident.

"You should've just stayed at the scene," the officer replied.

Ash was driving down Orange Avenue when he sped past the red light at Gore Street and ran into the SUV so hard it flipped over. The driver was rushed to the hospital with a swollen face and paramedics had to place a brace around his neck.

After the crash, Ash took off his shoes and ran to East Harding and Baylarian Avenue. He stopped to ask someone to call him a cab, because he had been in an accident. Instead, they called police.

"My life has been going nowhere for a while and maybe this is what I need to wake up," Ash added.

Ash is charged with leaving the scene of an accident and Channel 9 is still trying to learn exactly what is on the long list of prior driving violations. Although he admitted he had been drinking, Ash was not charged with a DUI, because officers couldn't prove he was legally drunk.