Home News 

Story

19-Year-Old Charged In Merritt Island Fatal Hit And Run

Posted: 2:51 pm EDT July 11, 2008Updated: 5:23 pm EDT July 11, 2008

The Florida Highway Patrol arrested a teenager Friday for a deadly hit and run crash that killed a Brevard County woman. Tammi Taborn, 45, was run over last month while walking along South Tropical Trail (also known as SR-3) on Merritt Island.

All it took was some paint chips and debris from the car found along SR-3 and the help of a Good Samaritan who noticed a damaged SUV he believed could have been involved in the deadly crash. That led troopers to 19-year-old Colin Christopher Miller of Indialantic.

Investigators believe Miller was driving home from his girlfriend's home when he struck and killed Taborn. Her body was found on the grass alongside SR-3 on June 22. Investigators believe she may have been walking in the road.

Tammi's mother can't fathom how he could have kept driving.

"It wasn't an animal that he hit. It was an individual and it was my daughter, my baby daughter that he hit and killed," Dorothy Carder-Moore said.

Troopers were able to tie the hit and run back to Miller after they discovered parts of a silver Toyota Sequoia SUV near Taborn's body. They tracked down similar SUVs in the area and found one at Miller's residence with significant damage.

Miller's girlfriend told investigators he thought he hit an animal.

"Obviously, with the significant damage that was on this vehicle, he should have known that he hit something more than a possum," said Trooper Kim Miller, Florida Highway Patrol.

Miller faces 30 years in prison for the hit and run. Authorities said, if he had stopped, it's possible Miller wasn't even at fault for the collision itself. But troopers said he still should not have left the scene.

Colin Miller's attorney, Kepler Funk, said they are going to conduct their own investigation into what happened.

More Headlines

Make WFTV Your Power On

Did you ever turn your television off at night and notice the next morning that your set comes on to a different channel? You can set your cable box so that your TV comes on to the station you want. It's easy! Full Story ››
Step-By-Step Text Instructions


Click Picks
Video Clips
AP Photo/Peter Kramer
Heidi Klum and her post-baby body led the parade at the annual Victoria's Secret fashion show, which returned to New York with some fresh faces after four years on the road. View Images ››


Strange News Photos

From brilliant to bizarre, our 99-photo slideshow captures a variety of strange news. Photos are added often. Take A Look!

County-By-County News

Get Hyper-Local On WFTV.com

Visit our County-By-County section for the latest news headlines out of your county. » County-By-County

When you take videos or photos of Central Florida news or weather events, iWitness is your place to upload them. » iWitness

Visit your headquarters for county-by-county news and resources, and a place to share community videos and photos. » 9Central