Left inset: Leigha Mumby (Flagler County Sheriff’s Office). Right inset: Daniel Waterman (GoFundMe). Background: Daniel Waterman in the hospital after Leigha Mumby allegedly caused a car crash in Florida that left him critically injured (GoFundMe).
A tragic incident in Florida has taken a shocking turn as a man, who awakened from a coma after a devastating car crash, accused his pregnant girlfriend of intentionally causing the accident. The 22-year-old man from New York has since passed away, and his girlfriend is now facing criminal charges.
According to a criminal complaint, Leigha Mumby, 24, allegedly told Daniel Waterman, “I don’t care what happens, you’ll get what you deserve,” before veering off the road and hitting a tree, resulting in Waterman’s incapacitation.
The complaint details Waterman’s account given to police on May 15, after emerging from a coma more than three months following the February 9 crash on Interstate 95. His injuries were extensive, including fractures to his cervical spine, clavicle, and femur, a hip dislocation, as well as a severe head injury and other traumas.
Due to his inability to speak, police reportedly used a letter board to communicate with Waterman, a method confirmed by his mother in a conversation with Syracuse.com.
Tragically, Waterman succumbed to pneumonia on October 8.
“He never gave up,” his mother shared, reflecting on her son’s determination. “This whole entire time, he literally never gave up.”
Mumby is now facing a vehicular homicide charge, along with reckless driving with serious bodily harm and aggravated battery with a deadly weapon resulting in bodily harm, which she was charged with in July after Waterman woke up and told police what allegedly happened.
“In his interview, Daniel stated that he and Leigha were in an argument due to personal issues with Leigha finding out she was pregnant that day and a text message Daniel received from a female friend in New York,” the investigator who interviewed Waterman explained in the complaint. “Daniel and Leigha exchanged expletives. Daniel stated, Leigha began driving recklessly.”
According to Waterman, Mumby slowed down the 2019 Honda Passport they were in to 50 mph and he tried to get out of the car before she sped up to 80 to 90 mph, according to the complaint. Daniel stated that the “last thing he remembers before the crash” was Mumby allegedly telling him she didn’t care what happened and he was getting what he deserved.
A cousin of Waterman’s told FlaglerLive.com that Mumby texted her from Waterman’s phone just minutes before the crash, saying, “This is what he gets for being a liar and a cheater.” The cousin, Jessica Stappenbeck, recalled speaking to Waterman earlier in the day about the pregnancy.
“During the day, he did say, he didn’t know what he was going to do, and he didn’t like how Leigha was handling the situation,” Stappenbeck told FlaglerLive. She said the couple had plans to watch the Super Bowl at Stappenbeck’s house that day. They reportedly left before the end of the game and got onto I-95 heading south before turning around at Palm Coast Parkway and traveling north, according to police.
The two of them were allegedly arguing over the pregnancy and texts that Waterman sent to a woman in New York.
“Leigha made these statements and immediately swerved off the road to crash her car,” the complaint says.
Waterman’s family says his last dying wish was for them to get custody of the child, a baby girl, that Mumby was pregnant with. “We’ll do whatever we can do to bring her to us,” his mother told Syracuse.com. “He wanted her raised in New York with his family.”
Mumby has posted bond and is awaiting her next court appearance, scheduled for Nov. 19.
