06/07/2026
UPDATE: CHARGES DROPPED IN DEADLY ALLEYWAY CRASH
Charges have been officially dropped against Nathan D. Brown, the 51-year-old St. Petersburg sanitation worker arrested after a fatal alleyway crash that killed 49-year-old Candice Roberts.
The Pinellas-Pasco State Attorney’s Office filed a formal "No Information" notice, declining to prosecute the first-degree felony charge of leaving the scene of a crash involving death.
According to the original arrest affidavit, a delivery truck driver explicitly warned Brown that people were sleeping in the alley right before he backed up. Police records also state Brown admitted to seeing individuals in the area prior to the incident. Roberts, who was unhoused, was run over as the city garbage truck serviced a dumpster.
Despite the warnings detailed in the police affidavit, prosecutors determined the evidence did not warrant prosecution. To secure a conviction for leaving the scene, the state must prove a driver knew or should have known a crash occurred. The swift dismissal indicates a lack of conclusive evidence that Brown realized the heavy machinery had struck a person before he drove away.
The criminal case is now closed. What do you think about this?
A City of St. Petersburg sanitation employee faces a felony charge of leaving the scene of a crash involving death after striking and killing a woman sleeping in a downtown alleyway on Saturday morning, May 30th 2026.
According to the probable cause affidavit released by the St. Petersburg Police Department, 51-year-old Nathan Brown was operating a 2019 Kenworth commercial dumpster truck around 6:30 AM in the alleyway running between Central Avenue and 1st Avenue North. Investigators state a bystander explicitly warned Brown before he entered the alley that multiple individuals were sleeping on the ground.
The affidavit confirms that Brown admitted to seeing pedestrians sleeping in the area but proceeded to reverse eastbound to service a commercial dumpster. After loading the trailer, Brown drove westbound toward 3rd Street North, running directly over 49-year-old Candice Roberts as she lay on the asphalt.
Police reports state Brown left the scene without stopping, checking for injuries, or attempting to render medical assistance. Roberts was pronounced dead at the scene by emergency medical personnel. Traffic homicide detectives located the city-owned truck and arrested Brown later that afternoon. He was booked into the Pinellas County Jail, and the investigation remains active.
