At approximately 1:10 p.m. on Wednesday, May 4, 2022, a woman was run over while on the beach in the city of St. Pete Beach. The incident reported involved a deputy that was operating his vehicle on the beach in the 4500 block of Gulf Boulevard.
Investigators say Deputy Brien was on beach patrol and parked facing west in his 2017 fully Marked Chevrolet Tahoe. While Deputy Brien was speaking to several pedestrians on the beach, he was dispatched to a 911 hang up call at another location. Deputy Brien made a right turn from his parked position, when he struck 23 year-old Robin Diffenderfer while she was lying on her back in the sand.
According to investigators, the front driver side tire of the Tahoe drove over Diffenderfer’s right side and mid to upper back area.
The woman suffered lower extremity injuries and was declared a trauma alert. She was transported via ambulance to the trauma center at Bayfront Health St. Petersburg.
Deputy Brien was not injured.
A similar incident occurred in May of 2020 in Indian Shores. https://iontb.com/indian-shores-police-officer-drives-over-man-lying-on-the-beach/