A 22-year-old St Petersburg man with a disturbing history of traffic violations faces DUI manslaughter charges after allegedly striking a mother riding her e-bike, dragging her for eight blocks on his windscreen, and leaving her to die on a Gulfport roadside in Florida.
Xavier Omar Rigby was arrested early Sunday morning following the horrific hit-and-run crash that killed 38-year-old Kjersten Aileen-Hermance Strang, a devoted mother from nearby St Petersburg who was riding her electric bicycle along 49th Street South around 10pm on Saturday night.
The Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office said Rigby was driving his 2021 Nissan Altima at a “high rate of speed” when he struck the rear tyre of Strang’s e-bike, which was equipped with a functioning headlight. The violent impact ejected Strang from her bicycle, hurling her onto the windscreen of Rigby’s vehicle.
In a shocking display of callousness, investigators said Rigby continued driving for approximately eight blocks with Strang on his car before she was dislodged onto the roadway. He then fled the scene without calling 911 or waiting for emergency services, leaving the mother dying alone on the street where she was later pronounced dead.
“We’ve now gone to a second DUI, but this time the extremely aggravating facts where you’ve killed somebody, left the scene and dragged their body,” Judge Elizabeth Zuroweste told Rigby during his first court appearance on Monday morning. “I don’t need to go any further for how aggravating this set of facts are.”
St Petersburg police located Rigby shortly after the crash at a liquor store at 2222 49th Street South, just a mile from where Strang’s body was found. Officers reported that Rigby showed clear signs of impairment, including bloodshot eyes, slurred speech, an unsteady gait, and alcohol on his breath. He refused to cooperate with field sobriety tests and was taken into custody.
The suspect now faces three felony charges: leaving the scene of a crash involving death, vehicular homicide leaving the scene, and DUI manslaughter. Judge Zuroweste ordered no bond for two of the charges and set a £577,000 ($750,000) bond for the DUI manslaughter charge.
“I’m finding that you’re a danger to the community and that nothing else can secure your decision making and putting your life and everyone else’s life on the road,” Judge Zuroweste declared during the hearing.
Court records reveal this was far from Rigby’s first brush with the law over dangerous driving. In 2022, he was involved in another hit-and-run incident. In 2023, he was arrested for driving under the influence after admitting to drinking alcohol and smoking marijuana before getting behind the wheel. That DUI charge was plea-bargained down to reckless driving in 2024.
Judge Zuroweste specifically addressed Rigby’s troubling pattern during Monday’s court appearance: “Here you are with a prior leaving the scene from 2022, then in 2024, the state was generous enough to reduce your DUI to a reckless, for purposes of bond, it’s a DUI.”
The victim, Kjersten Strang, leaves behind a young son and grieving family members who described her as a devoted mother. Her social media profiles painted a picture of a close-knit family, frequently featuring photographs of her child and her own mother.
In a particularly poignant Facebook post that now reads like a tragic farewell, Strang had recently written to her son: “I’ll love you forever. I’ll like you for always. As long as I’m living my baby you’ll be loved.”
Family members contacted by local media said they were not yet ready to speak publicly about their loss but shared photographs of Strang, showing a smiling woman who appeared to be at the centre of her family’s life.
The tragedy has sparked renewed calls for safer streets in Gulfport, where the incident occurred near the intersection of 49th Street and 10th Avenue South. Local business owner and road safety advocate expressed frustration about the dangerous conditions cyclists face in the area.
“You can see the street – there’s no bike lanes,” one local advocate told reporters. “The sidewalks are very unmanaged. They’re not very inviting. So to be a bicyclist in this area is inherently dangerous, and then you add drunk drivers to the mix, and it is lethal.”
A memorial has begun growing at the crash site, with community members leaving flowers and messages of condolences for Strang’s family. The makeshift tribute marks the spot where emergency responders from Gulfport Fire Department Station 17 found Strang’s body after responding to reports of a cyclist struck by a vehicle.
The Major Accident Investigation Team continues to investigate the incident, with deputies returning to the crash site on Monday to collect additional surveillance footage from the night of the collision. Investigators noted that the area has multiple cameras that may have captured the horrific sequence of events.
The case has drawn particular attention due to the shocking nature of the alleged crime – not merely the initial collision, but Rigby’s decision to continue driving for eight blocks with the victim on his vehicle before fleeing the scene entirely.
During Monday’s court proceedings, prosecutors emphasised the “extremely aggravating” circumstances of the case, noting that Rigby’s actions showed a complete disregard for human life. The state attorney’s office read out Rigby’s extensive criminal record, which included multiple speeding infractions and drug possession charges in addition to his previous DUI and hit-and-run incidents.
Local road safety campaigners said the tragedy underscores the urgent need for infrastructure improvements to protect vulnerable road users, particularly in areas like Gulfport where cyclists must share roads with vehicles. The stretch of 49th Street where Strang was killed lacks dedicated cycling lanes, forcing riders to use the curb lane alongside traffic.
The incident has also reignited debates about repeat traffic offenders and the plea-bargaining system that allowed Rigby’s previous DUI charge to be reduced to reckless driving just months before the fatal crash. Critics argue that more stringent penalties for first-time DUI offenders might prevent such tragedies.
As the investigation continues, Rigby remains in the Pinellas County Jail awaiting further court proceedings. If convicted on all charges, he faces substantial prison time for the DUI manslaughter alone, which carries severe penalties under Florida law.
For Strang’s family and the Gulfport community, the focus remains on mourning a life cut tragically short. The young mother who promised her son eternal love in her social media posts is now gone, leaving a family devastated and a community demanding answers about how a repeat offender was able to cause such a preventable tragedy.
The Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office has asked anyone with information about the incident or who may have witnessed the crash to contact investigators as they build their case against Rigby. Meanwhile, local authorities have pledged to review road safety measures in the area where Strang lost her life.
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