2 motorists killed in Walton

Floridan Staff Report
Published: April 30, 2008

Two men were killed in a Walton County traffic crash late Tuesday night, according to a press release from the Florida Highway Patrol.

The victims were identified as Robert William Woods, 42, of Miramar Beach, and Defuniak Springs resident Ramon Casares, 33.

The FHP reported that Woods was southbound on State Road 331 “at a high rate of speed” in an F150 Ford truck when he came up behind a southbound Mercury Mountaineer driven by 64-year-old James Eugene Smith of Niceville.

Woods changed lanes to overtake the Mountaineer and traveled into the path of the northbound Honda Civic driven by Casares.

The two collided head-on, and the truck started spinning and overturned. The truck also struck the Mountaineer, and its driver, Smith, received minor injuries.
Woods and Casares were pronounced dead at the scene by Walton County EMS around 11:30 p.m.