MAIT Investigates Vehicle Versus Pedestrian Crash in St. Pete Beach (26-027)

ST. PETE BEACH – Deputies assigned to the Major Accident Investigation Team (MAIT) are investigating a vehicle versus pedestrian crash in St. Pete Beach.

According to investigators, on March 25, 2026, at approximately 9:09 P.M., 56-year-old Paula Poe was found lying along the southbound curb of Gulf Boulevard and 44th Avenue with life-threatening injuries consistent with being hit by a motor vehicle. The suspect vehicle was seen driving southbound on Gulf Boulevard, leaving pieces of vehicle debris in the roadway.

Deputies located the suspect vehicle, a 2019 Cadillac Escalade, in a hotel parking lot in Tierra Verde and identified the driver as 43-year-old Margaret Barah Gardner.

Gardner showed signs of impairment and performed poorly on field sobriety tests. She was arrested and charged with Driving Under the Influence, Refusal to Submit to Testing, and Leaving the Scene of a Crash with Serious Bodily Injury. Gardner was transported to the Pinellas County Jail.

Poe was transported to the hospital with life-threatening injuries and remains in critical condition.

Next of kin has been notified.

The investigation continues.

Additional Information
Paula Poe (Victim – Life Threatening Injuries)
DOB: 05/13/1969

Margaret Barah Gardner (Suspect – Arrested)
Alias: Margaret Barah Smith
DOB: 10/08/1982
Charges: Driving Under the Influence, Refusal to Submit to Testing, Leaving the Scene of a Crash with Serious Bodily Injury