Accused drunk driver nearly hits 8 Lee County deputies

An accused drunk driver almost hit eight deputies who were trying to stop and get him out of his car.

Lee County Sheriff’s Office deputies said Edward Kolodny fell asleep behind the wheel.

They tried to stop his car by blocking it with their patrol cars on Pondella Road near State Road 41 on Sunday, around 3 a.m.

Once they stopped it, deputies smashed in the window to wake Kolodny up.

He then tried to escape, slamming on the gas, reversing the car and hitting the patrol cars.

At one point, the eight deputies had to jump out of the way to avoid being hit.

That’s when they say Kolodny sped off with deputies in pursuit.

They reached speeds of 100 miles per hour until Kolodny slammed into a concrete wall at Fowler and Second streets in Fort Myers.

For Sharon Cortez, the quiet of a Sunday morning was shattered when the speeding car, fleeing deputies, crashed right outside her window.

“I just sat down on my couch,” said Cortez. “It was like 3:20 a.m., and I heard sirens, which is quite common here. Then, all of a sudden, I said, ‘Oh, here we go again.’ Within five seconds, I heard the loudest boom right on the other side of the wall, the courtyard where my unit is.”

For Cortez, this crash brought back painful memories

“My mother was killed by a drunk driver when I was 16,” said Cortez. “Mother and sister-in-law, both in LaBelle, and there’s no excuse to drink and drive.”

Cortez said she immediately rushed to get her son and their dogs out of the apartment, but for her, this was the breaking point.

“It was scary,” said Cortez. “I can’t stay living here like this. It’s not safe.”

The vehicle’s registration was also expired, and detectives later discovered the car belonged to a deceased individual.

Kolodny now faces multiple felony charges.