Orlando, FL : Orlando college student killed in hit-and-run crash early Sunday morning on State Road 50 near Lake Pickett Road on July 20, 2014

Nicole Brennan, 21, had stepped out of her Toyota Solara to check how much damage her car had sustained following an accident early Sunday morning on State Road 50 near Lake Pickett Road.

As she stood on the white line that separates the turn lane from the other east-bound lanes, a pickup plowed into her. Then she was hit by a red van that dragged her body several feet, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.

Both of those drivers fled, but the pickup driver, James Robert Albaugh, returned 3 1/2 hours later and was arrested.

As troopers on Monday tried to track down the owner of the red van, Brennan's family began preparing for her funeral.

"I can't imagine life without her in it," said her mother, Monika Brennan, 52, of Spring Hill in Hernando County, about 50 miles north of Tampa.


Nicole Marie Brennan was taking two classes at Valencia this summer and was on track to graduate in August.

She planned to take classes at the University of Central Florida, where she wanted to study business and filmmaking.

"She was a free spirit," said her mother, "a kind-hearted person."

She also worked at Dave & Buster's, a restaurant and game center on International Drive.

Brennan's parents, Michael and Monika Brennan, were not sure what happened at the scene of the crash, except that their daughter was en route home from a gathering about 1:30 a.m. Sunday when she was killed.

The crash happened about 3 1/2 miles from the apartment she shared with her brother.

Nicole Brennan had grown up in Spring Hill and graduated from Nature Coast Technical High School in Spring Hill.

For four years she was on its soccer team, her mother said, and also ran track: the 400 meters, 800 meters and mile relay.

In high school, she'd taken four years of video production and decided that's what she wanted to do for a living.

"She loved to entertain," said her father.

She had already made a documentary about her grandmother, who was in Berlin during World War II.

Nicole Brennan had just learned how to scuba dive, her mother said, and loved to ride her bicycle.

She had been active in her local Lutheran church, where she served as a cross bearer for many years, her father said.

She also volunteered at a soup kitchen and the local animal shelter.

Albaugh, 49, of Titusville, was arrested for leaving the scene of a crash.

No one answered a phone listed in his name.

Source :
Orlando college student killed in hit-and-run crash called a 'free spirit'