Nearly two years after two Central Florida teens were struck on International Drive, their families say they were blindsided to learn the driver accused in the crash quietly cut a deal. Dennis Trost pleaded no contest in June and received a three-year prison sentence for the Sept. 3, 2024, collision that killed 15-year-old Ashley Nielsen and left 14-year-old Troy DeLeon with serious, permanent injuries. The outcome has reopened deep wounds for the families and sparked outrage from officials in Tallahassee.
Plea, sentence and what it means
Trost entered a no-contest plea to leaving the scene of a crash with death and leaving the scene with serious bodily injury. Circuit Judge Michael Kraynick sentenced him to three years in prison. Prosecutors’ notes, as reported by the Orlando Sentinel, show those charges carried a maximum exposure of 45 years and a statutory four-year minimum term. Under the agreement, that minimum was reduced. For the victims' families, the short sentence felt like a gut punch compared with what they believed the case was worth.
What investigators say about the crash
According to Florida Highway Patrol records, the crash happened just before 8 p.m. on Sept. 3, 2024, at International Drive and Parc Corniche Drive, when a 2016 Jeep Compass making a left turn struck two teens riding mini-motorcycles, ClickOrlando reported. The report noted it was dark and rainy, both riders wore dark clothing, and their bikes had no lights. Video from the Parc Corniche complex later showed damage to a Jeep that investigators said was consistent with the collision.
Families and courtroom reaction
At the victim-impact hearing, relatives and the injured teen pressed for accountability and a full trial rather than a quiet plea. “I'm not asking for vengeance. I am asking for justice for my son,” Vanessa Martinez told the judge, speaking for DeLeon. His family also voiced frustration that investigative delays left them in limbo for months without clear answers, according to WESH. For them, the three-year deal felt less like closure and more like a reminder of everything they say went wrong.
Prosecutors' reasoning and political fallout
The State Attorney's Office has stood by the plea, arguing the evidence was weaker than it appeared and noting that investigators did not observe signs of impairment when they eventually made contact with Trost. Troopers did not question him at the scene and did not conduct an interview until they returned with a warrant roughly 12 hours later, the Orlando Sentinel reported. The deal triggered a sharp public rebuke from Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier, who in a July 1 letter, criticized how the Worrell office handled several serious plea offers. Trost is currently held at the Tomoka Work Camp in Daytona Beach.
What’s next
Family members say they are not done seeking answers and have urged judges and prosecutors to rethink how cases involving deadly crashes are handled, according to WESH. Their fight has now spilled into a broader debate in the Ninth Judicial Circuit over plea bargaining, how strong evidence must be before going to trial, and how much say victims' families should have when life-altering plea deals land on the table.
