The jury trial continues in the case involving a woman who is accused of a hit and run that resulted in the death of a 12-year-old boy in March 2017.
Hunter Cope was walking to school when he was struck by Permenter's SUV at the intersection of Wonderwood Drive and A1A.
Permenter was charged with DUI manslaughter in the second degree, DUI causing damage, and leaving the scene of an accident after she allegedly hit Cope.
Jury selection for the trial began on Monday.
On Wednesday the medical examiner, Dr. Robert Palzgraf, who performed the autopsy on Hunter testified a severe head and neck injury killed the boy.
Family were somber but collected listening to the details of the injuries Hunter sustained and the cause of his death. The speed limit at the intersection of Wonderwood Road and A1A where Hunter was struck and killed was reduced slightly after the accident, but parents say the intersection is still dangerous.
A petition was started in 2017 after Cope's death to implement safer streets and crosswalks for children who walk to school in these busy intersections.
Many commented on the petition saying the intersection of Wonderwood Road and A1A is particularly dangerous and a change needs to be made to make it safer.
Cope sustained multiple internal and external injuries. Dr. Palzgraf testified it was the damage to his head and neck that caused Hunter's death. Parents have tried to make these intersections where hundreds of kids cross to walk to school safer to no avail saying they wanted to put speed bumps in but couldn't because of the fire station on the corner.
Defense witness Steven Rickard, an expert in accident reconstruction engineering testified there was nothing Permenter could have done to avoid striking Hunter Cope.
The judge denied the defense’s motioned to dismiss count one, which is the DUI manslaughter charge.
This is not Permenter's first driving infraction. JSO tells First Coast News she was involved in a separate hit and run just prior to killing Hunter, just hundreds of feet away.