Pinellas attorney John Trevena seriously injured in hit-and-run crash

John Trevena felt his knees explode with pain as he was thrown against the dashboard of his car.

Then he felt nothing. Trevena dialed 911 from inside the smashed Volkswagen Beetle.

“I think I’m paralyzed,” he told the dispatcher.

Trevena, a Pinellas County lawyer who has tried a number of high-profile cases over the years, spent Monday night in an intensive care unit and remained hospitalized Tuesday.

Trevena is still awaiting the results of multiple MRIs and CT scans to determine the extent of his injuries after he and his wife were struck in a hit-and-run crash Monday evening at the corner of Ulmerton Road and U.S.19.

The crash happened just after 7 p.m. as the couple headed home from the Falkenburg Road Jail, where Trevena was visiting a client. He stopped at a red light, after which the driver of a white sedan rear-ended them at what felt like a high speed, he said.

Trapped inside his car, Trevena watched the driver, who he said appeared to be a woman, pull into a shopping center, circle the parking lot and speed off.

“It’s so cold-hearted. Even doing what I do for a living, I was just still astonished that she would just take off into high speed and just pull out of there and not even check to see if we were alive,” he said.

Trevena’s wife, Tracy, also suffered spinal injuries, but was released from the hospital Monday, Trevena said.

“Her whole side got bruised,” he said. “She’s black and blue from the waist down.”

Trevena’s most high-profile clients over the years have included Michael Drejka, who was accused of gunning down another man in a Clearwater parking lot during an argument over a parking space; and Jennifer Mee, also known as “Hiccup Girl” for a case of the hiccups that would not stop, who was later accused of setting up a robbery attempt that led to a murder. Both were convicted and sentenced to prison.

Most recently, Trevena represented a Winter Haven man who was sentenced to 40 years in prison last year for a fiery, high-speed crash on Interstate 4 that killed two men.

Trevena said it took first responders 30 minutes to cut through his car before paramedics could pull him out and take he and his wife to a nearby hospital.

Trevena said he’s grateful to be alive but lamented the loss of the vehicle, a collectible and the last year of Volkswagen’s turbo models.

“My little Beetle is no more, sawed into pieces,” he said. “I’m going to miss that car.”

Trevena is hopeful that traffic cameras and security footage will lead Florida Highway Patrol investigators to the driver.

“I’m just hoping they catch her,” he said.

For now, Trevena is focusing on his recovery, but he’s also worried about being out of work.

“As a lawyer, you know, a sole practitioner, it’s pretty devastating to your business when something like this happens,” Trevena said. “God forbid, I’m not able to return to practice or something. You never know.”