Published on April 01, 2026
On February 8, 2026, at approximately 0736 hours, Melbourne Police Department responded to the area of Hibiscus Blvd. and S. Harbor City Blvd. in reference to a crash. Upon arrival, a blue Chevy SUV was located in a lane which had been closed off for the participants of the 18th Annual Florida Marathon. It was discovered that a vehicle had struck one of the runners. The runner was transported to a local hospital and ultimately succumbed to his injuries on February 16, 2026.
The investigation resulted in an arrest warrant was obtained for the driver of the Chevy, James David Wilson, on March 26, 2026. Members of the Melbourne Police Department worked with members of the FBI’s Violent Crimes Taskforce who located Wilson in Hollywood, FL, and took him into custody on April 1, 2026. Wilson was charged with DUI-Manslaughter, Vehicular Homicide, Driving While License Suspended with a prior offense, and Failure to Maintain Financial Responsibility. Wilson has a No Bond status based on the charges. He will be extradited from Broward County and returned to Brevard County for this case.
We appreciate the assistance from, and patience of the community while we worked through the case. If anyone has additional information that can provide further assistance to this case, you can contact the primary Traffic Homicide Investigator Glenn Whiteside at (321) 616-6087. Anyone who prefers to provide information anonymously can do so by calling Crimeline at 800-423-TIPS (8477) or by going to www.crimeline.org.