UPDATE: Driver charged with DUI manslaughter in bicycle rider death

[File photo by Bruce Ackerman]

UPDATED POST: A 34-year-old Fruitland Park woman was arrested by the Florida Highway Patrol and charged with DUI manslaughter in connection with a fatal crash early on June 7, 2025, which claimed the life of a 37-year-old Ocala man riding a bicycle.

Janice Schwarz, whose address has also been given by the FHP as Belleview, was booked into the Marion County Jail at 8:28 a.m. on June 7 and charged with one count of DUI manslaughter and four counts of DUI property damage.

Schwarz stands charged in connection with the crash which occurred around 1:56 a.m. on June 7 on County Road 25 near Southeast 80th Court.

According to an FHP press release following the crash, the sedan Schwarz was driving struck the rear of the bicycle which was also traveling west on CR 25 on the north shoulder ahead of the sedan.

The rider of the bicycle was pronounced deceased on the scene by Marion County Fire Rescue, according to the press release.

Schwarz posted $52,000 bail and was released from the Marion County Jail on June 8, according to online jail records.

ORIGINAL POST: A 37-year-old Ocala man died early Saturday after his bicycle was struck from behind on a southeast Marion County road by a driver who later was charged with DUI manslaughter, the Florida Highway Patrol reports.

According to an FHP press release, the crash occurred around 1:56 a.m. on County Road 25 near the intersection with Southeast 80th Court.

“(The sedan) was traveling westbound on State Road 25 just past the intersection of SE 80th Court. A bicyclist was traveling westbound in the north shoulder ahead of (the sedan). The front of (the sedan) struck the rear of the bicyclist,” the release noted.

The bicyclist was not wearing a helmet, the press release stated.

“The bicyclist was pronounced deceased on scene by Marion County Rescue Fire. The driver of (the sedan) was arrested and charged for DUI manslaughter,” according to the press release.

The sedan was driven by a 34-year-old Fruitland Park woman who was wearing a seat belt and incurred minor injuries, the press release stated.

The crash is still under investigation.

According to the FHP Crash Dashboard at flhsmv.gov, there have been 28 traffic fatalities in Marion County from Jan. 1 to May 29, according to preliminary data. The dashboard indicates there has been one bicycle fatality and 40 bicycle crashes during the same time frame.