Circumstances change in crash after which former Martin baseball player, 2 others die

Will Greenlee, Treasure Coast Newspapers
·1 min read

The circumstances around a May crash in Georgia after which a former Martin County baseball standout died along with two others, have changed.

Former Martin County baseball player and LaGrange College student-athlete Stephen Bartolotta, 18, on May 14 was a passenger in a 2015 Honda driven by 19-year-old Jacob Brown.

They traveled west on State Route 109 in the area of LaGrange when an eastbound 2008 GMC driven by Rico Dunn, 24, “improperly passed” a 2019 Honda in a no-passing zone, a corrected Georgia State Patrol report states. Dunn’s vehicle crashed head-on into the 2015 Honda.

More: LaGrange baseball player, Martin County graduate Stephen Bartolotta dies in car crash

Bartolotta, Brown and Dunn died after the crash.

Bartolotta and Brown wore seatbelts, while Dunn did not, according to the report.

This changed from a preliminary account in which the Georgia State Patrol indicated the vehicle driven by Brown tried to pass a vehicle in a no-passing area, according to The LaGrange Daily News.

More: Automotive warehouse with several vehicles catches fire in Port St. Lucie, injures 3

The LaGrange Daily News in June quoted Lt. Mark Riley, director of public information for the Georgia State Patrol, as saying the information changed following a closer investigation by a collision reconstruction team.

Martin County’s Stephen Bartolotta (6) throws a pitch in the bottom of the fourth inning during the annual Ryan Johansen Memorial Baseball Game against Jensen Beach Thursday, April 1, 2021, in Jensen Beach. The game honors Johansen, the former Martin County standout who passed away in 2006 in an ATV accident at the age of 25. Martin County won 5-4.
Martin County’s Stephen Bartolotta (6) throws a pitch in the bottom of the fourth inning during the annual Ryan Johansen Memorial Baseball Game against Jensen Beach Thursday, April 1, 2021, in Jensen Beach. The game honors Johansen, the former Martin County standout who passed away in 2006 in an ATV accident at the age of 25. Martin County won 5-4.

Bartolotta played his freshman year at Community Christian in Stuart before joining the Tiger program. Attending classes at the Clark Advanced Learning Center next to IRSC's Chastain Campus during his time at Martin County, Bartolotta became one of the Tigers' top players in his junior and senior seasons.

Will Greenlee is a breaking news reporter for TCPalm. Follow Will on Twitter @OffTheBeatTweet or reach him by phone at 772-267-7926. E-mail him at will.greenlee@tcpalm.com

If you're a subscriber, thank you. If not, become a subscriber to get the latest breaking news and crime coverage.

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Circumstances change in fatal crash involving former Martin baseball player