Philanthropist and civic leader Danny Berenberg was struck by a hit-and-run driver the night of April 4,2008 in Jacksonville Beach, Fla.
The driver then emerged from her car but then returned to it and fled, leaving Danny semi-conscious with life-threatening injuries, lying in the street.
Friends are trying to track down the driver, who sped away in a car resembling a white Hyundai. A reward has been established.
Please send a link to this blog to people you know to help this case.
Contact: Teresa Eichner
Access Public Relations
904/493-5006 or 982-9028
April 14, 2008
Turning Tragedy into Community Assistance
JACKSONVILLE, FLA. -- A Jacksonville civic leader and human rights activist, left bleeding in the street after being struck by a hit-and-run driver in Jacksonville Beach, is offering an unusual reward.
Danny Berenberg says his philanthropy firm will reward the person who comes forward with information leading to the arrest and conviction of the assailant, by making a donation to that good citizen's charity of choice.
The reward exceeds $1,000 and grows daily with contributions.
Berenberg was crossing the street around 8:30 p.m. on April 4, 2008, at Sixth Avenue South when a car hit him. The driver got out of her vehicle to see there was a man down, but quickly returned to her car and sped away. Bystanders describe her as in her late 20s or early 30s, somewhat heavyset, with brownish blond hair, driving a light-colored car that resembled 2001 white Hyundai. Witnesses say she may have been talking on her cell phone at the time.
Media reports are at: http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/local/news-article.aspx?storyid=106469 and St. Augustine Record.
Well wishers may add to the reward at: GiftCounsel.com Reward Fund, c/o the Community Foundation in Jacksonville, 121 West Forsyth Street, Suite 900, Jacksonville, FL 32202
"The Jacksonville area has a growing problem with hit-and-run accidents," Berenberg said from his home, where he is recovering. "It appears that drivers are leaving the scene because they don't feel they'll be caught. This concerns me as a citizen, because it's an indicator of the health of a community when people feel there is no consequence for their actions."
Already the murder capital of Florida, Jacksonville solves few of its hit-and-run crimes, according to news reports.
Berenberg founded a successful fund-raising consultancy, which has helped build major projects such as The Florida Times-Union Center for the Performing Arts, Jacksonville Zoo's Range of the Jaguars exhibit, the Equestrian Center and others. He had recently completed a statewide speaking tour to help nonprofit organizations develop community support for their missions.
Berenberg was co-founder of the internationally recognized Kaiser Roll road race in Bloomington, Minn. in the 1980s. It was the first certified wheelchair road
race in the world, and was the precursor of Olympic Wheelchair Racing.
He served on the National Board of the International Wheelchair Road Racing Commission. Today, he struggles with mobility issues of his own.
15 comments:
This was a truly cowardly act. Please help the police track down and bring to justice the person that hit my dear friend, Danny.I hope there is a close to this case soon, and that Danny is up and doing good again for our community.
Thanks, Camille, I know it means a lot to Danny that people rally to do something to stop these kinds of crimes and get people to do the right thing.
Thanks for sending the link around to your sphere of influence so we can keep the ripples going outward and keep the case alive.
Hello friends of Danny...Danny and I met five years ago when I lectured at The Cummer Museum of Art, and we became instant friends. His well being is, of course our paramount concern. But we want to see him up and running, too, because of all the good he's done and is doing for Jacksonville's cultural community. Stay vigilant.
Thanks, Gary, I agree with you -- Danny gives and gives to the community, he is not a taker. His life is all about helping others.
We're hoping the police will do their work with the good clues they have, and they have some substantial leads.
I'm glad to hear the police have some good leads. It's unbelievable that someone could hit someone else and leave. It's atrocious! I sure hope Danny is doing well. He's a great asset for our community. I've learned a lot from him and really appreciate his zest for life.
Whoever said that no good deed goes unpunished never knew how correct those words were and are. Here is a man, a very good man who, through countless good deeds has helped an incalculable number of people, and now, must be forced to suffer pain for the rest of his life because of a criminal and cowardly act.
If any one man has the fortitude to get through this, it is Danny. The shame is that he must suffer at the hands of one of the lowest of low on the planet. I feel strongly that, one day, justice will be done because another good person will do the right thing and turn this poor excuse for a human being in to the police.
good luck finding her i was also actually run over then back over by a drunk woman in a small black little car august 2005 never heard back from police it was 1 am in the parking lot next to the jax beach city hall parking lott kj
Dear Anonymous,
I feel badly for your situation and hope all is well for you now. Bu, and it is a big but at that, under the word tenacity in the dictionary is Danny's picture. In a past life he must have been a Bull Dog.
With calm relentlessness, this person will be found.
To quote Mr. T, " I pity the fool!"
Other than this clue
Left here for you to work on
I hope the young lady
Never is a victim herself
Knowing how much pain Danny is in
And all the heartache she has caused
I was hit in Jax Beach February 2007. I got the Georgia tag number, however, the dispatcher wrote it down incorrectly.
Amazingly, I saw the vehicle parked at a motel in Atlantic Beach the following Easter. I contacted Atlantic Beach Police and got my police report. Officer Crews, who has subsequently been terminated for distribution of child pornography, stated he could not do anything because the tag number was different (it was 2 digits off) and because I said the vehicle was a Toyota and this vehicle was a Mazda.
I obtained a revised police report and Detective Dziedzicki was assigned. This officer clearly had no interest in this case. He phoned the suspect in Duluth, GA. She, of course, denied it but the detective wrote in his report, "Meghan further explained at the time of the occurrence, she was visiting with her father and grandmother who were both inside the vehicle with her and they were traveling on 3rd Street rather than 1st Street."
I could go on but it is clear to me that Jax Beach had no interest in this case. I have written two letters to the Chief of Police stating quite frankly that the entire would be comical, a travesty of errors were it not that my shoulder sustained major injuries. I further advised him that his department was a "Reno 911 South."
In conclusion, I am a former sergeant with a California law enforcement agency and know what a good investigation is. I have never seen a sloppier one as I have from Jacksonville Beach Police Department.
hello i wouldn't say blaming the entire jd pd is a way to see this it is more less today's lazy let it go society america has turned into my mind thinks like a robot i see wrong i fix it then and there complete or stay on top of it till the end america is turning into a third worl country thanx to our political wealthy border not protecting looke the other gov sad to think im out of work completly from my accident pain tho able to work but not compete as well with the arrivall of people who do jobs no one else will haha maby we should hire outa usa peeps to run gov they seem to not want to do their job either sorry to b soo bitter kj
Here are some ideas:
-Have all calls placed within 30 min. of the incident checked out. There may be a few cell towers and a few hundred calls but may be worth trying.
- Contact the car dealers for the type of car and get sales records for hood and fender sales near the incident time.
- Contact local body shops to see if any repairs to front ends were performed to a Hyundai after the incident.
- Have neighbors/businesses look out for the car in the same area, maybe the person works, plays or lives in the area.
- Also, was the person White? Black? Asian? Long hair short hair? what color? I don't see that info on this blog. I may have just missed it.
I did not know Danny, But wish him luck finding this person.
Bystanders describe her as in her late 20s or early 30s, somewhat heavyset, with brownish blond hair, driving a light-colored car that resembled 2001 white Hyundai. She is white. She's a regular at the Beach, probably very familiar to the nightclub scene.
Is it possible this person was on spring break? Maybestaying with friends? I was shocked to stumble across this Blog.
I met Danny back in 1983 when I did my first wheelchair race less than a year after crashing my car.I was paralyzed from the chest down. I finished 3rd in the Kaiser Roll 5K racing in my street chair with only the slightest of modifications. Without Wheelchair racing there is no doubt I would have been dead by now. God Bless Danny and many prayers for his recovery and the capture of the criminal who hurt him. Peace to Danny and his family, Layne Nelson, St. Paul Park, MN - Former Board Member Kaiser Roll Foundation
I contacted AMW. Can someone please send them the details of Danny's Hit and Run.
Dear Viewer:
Thank you for writing to America's Most Wanted. AMW only accepts requests for stories or segments through the mail. Please send your request to:
America's Most Wanted
P.O. Box Crime TV
Washington, DC 20016-9126
Please include a concise letter regarding the occurrence, a photograph of the victim and suspect, any newspaper clippings, police reports and the name and
phone number of the detective investigating this case. Please allow 8-10 weeks for a response from the producers. All material sent to the producers will not
be returned. If you can not provide this information to the producers, please give this to the victim's family or the detective investigating this crime.
America's Most Wanted does its best to apprehend criminals, locate missing children and solve even the toughest crimes. Our show provides the information,
but it's viewers like you who do the real job. Please stay tuned for our next show on Saturday, June 21, 2008 at 9PM EST.
Thanks for your continued support and interest in America's Most Wanted.
Sincerely, Operator 1221
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