GPD: U-Haul driver hits mother, child in parking lot

A Gainesville man, possibly high on cans of dust cleaner, drove a U-Haul truck into a mother and her child Sunday, injuring both, Gainesville Police say.

The accident, which occurred at about 5:31 p.m. at a Wal-Mart parking lot, left the child with a minor injury to her head and the mother with a broken right femur and a broken bone in her lower right leg, according to a police report.

Upon arrival to the store, located at 5700 NW 23rd St., police approached the driver, Evan Harrison Hawes, and noticed he seemed extremely thirsty, a sign of gas inhalation.

Inside the truck, which he rented, police found several cans of Dust-Off spray with the usage tabs removed. Police suspected him of inhaling the contents of the cans, according to the report.

Earlier in the day, at about 3 p.m., a person observed Hawes’ truck strike property behind a building, located at 1300 NW 42nd Ave., before fleeing the scene.

Using the truck’s tag information, police identified the renter as Hawes. The U-Haul was located at the house, but no one answered or could be located.

Police arrested Hawes on a charge of reckless driving with serious bodily injury and leaving the scene of an accident with property damage.

Authorities took him to the Alachua County Jail, where he remains in lieu of a $27,000 bond.

@martindvassolo

mvassolo@alligator.org

Evan Harrison Hawes