MEMORIAL DAY HOLIDAY WEEKEND IS JUST A FEW MINUTES AWAY. NEW TONIGHT AT PORT SAINT LUCIE. MAN IS IN JAIL ACCUSED OF CAUSING A FATAL CRASH LAST THANKSGIVING. POLICE SAY THIS MAN, 23 YEAR OLD RYAN BURDICK, WAS ALREADY DRUNK WHEN HE DROVE HIS OFF ROAD VEHICLE TO A STORE TO BUY MORE ALCOHOL. THE ACCIDENT HAPPENED ON HIS WAY HOME. HIS PASSENGER IN THE VEHICLE WAS KILLED. ARI HAIT IS IN PORT SAINT LUCIE WITH MORE DETAILS ON THE CASE AND NEW VIDEO FROM POLICE. ACCORDING TO POLICE HERE IN PORT SAINT LUCIE, THEY ISSUED AN ARREST WARRANT FOR THEIR SUSPECT ON MONDAY, AND HE TURNED HIMSELF IN A SHORT TIME LATER. IN ALL, IT WAS 172 DAYS BETWEEN THE CRASH AND THIS ARREST. WATCH THE LEFT SIDE OF YOUR SCREEN. YOU SEE THOSE HEADLIGHTS DRIVING TOWARD YOU. THAT VEHICLE MAKES LEFT AND AN SUV COMING THE OTHER WAY, SLAMS RIGHT INTO IT. THIS IS THANKSGIVING NIGHT OF LAST YEAR, NEAR THE INTERSECTION OF SOUTHEAST PORT SAINT LUCIE BOULEVARD AND SOUTHEAST GLOVER STREET IN PORT SAINT LUCIE. I DON’T KNOW IF HE’S STILL ALIVE. POLICE WERE ON SCENE IN MINUTES, CHECKING ONE VEHICLE AND THEN THE OTHER. A 46 YEAR OLD MAN NAMED RILEY WELCH WAS KILLED IN THIS CRASH. AND ON MONDAY, NEARLY SIX MONTHS LATER, THIS MAN, 24 YEAR OLD RYAN BURDICK, WAS ARRESTED ON MULTIPLE CHARGES, INCLUDING DUI MANSLAUGHTER. ACCORDING TO THE POLICE REPORT, BURDICK WAS DRIVING AN OFF ROAD VEHICLE NOT DESIGNED OR REGISTERED FOR ROADWAY USE. AND IT SAYS BURDICK WAS DRUNK WITH A BLOOD ALCOHOL CONTENT OF 0.213. THAT’S NEARLY THREE TIMES THE LEGAL LIMIT. WELCH WAS THE PASSENGER IN THAT OFF ROAD VEHICLE. HE DIED A FEW HOURS LATER. BURDICK WAS ALSO SERIOUSLY INJURED, BUT HE IS RECOVERING FOR NOW. RYAN BURDICK REMAINS IN THE SAINT LUCIE COUNTY JAIL. HIS BOND WAS S
Port St. Lucie police arrest man months after fatal Thanksgiving crash
Updated: 11:13 PM EDT May 18, 2026
Ryan Burdick, 24, was arrested Monday on multiple charges, including DUI manslaughter, nearly six months after a fatal crash on Thanksgiving night in Port St. Lucie.The crash happened near the intersection of SE Port St. Lucie Boulevard and SE Glover Street. Surveillance footage shows an off-road vehicle making a left turn and colliding with an SUV coming the other way. Police identified the victim as 46-year-old Riley Welchance, who was killed in the crash. Welchance was a passenger in the off-road vehicle, which police say was not designed or registered for roadway use. According to the police report, Burdick was driving the off-road vehicle while intoxicated, with a blood alcohol content of .213, nearly three times the legal limit. Burdick was seriously injured in the crash, but has since recovered. Burdick remains in the St. Lucie County Jail, with bond set at $81,000.Stay up-to-date: The latest headlines and weather from WPBF 25Get the latest news updates with the WPBF 25 News app. You can download it here. Your neighborhood: Local coverage from WPBF 25 News
PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. —
Ryan Burdick, 24, was arrested Monday on multiple charges, including DUI manslaughter, nearly six months after a fatal crash on Thanksgiving night in Port St. Lucie.
The crash happened near the intersection of SE Port St. Lucie Boulevard and SE Glover Street. Surveillance footage shows an off-road vehicle making a left turn and colliding with an SUV coming the other way.
Police identified the victim as 46-year-old Riley Welchance, who was killed in the crash. Welchance was a passenger in the off-road vehicle, which police say was not designed or registered for roadway use.
According to the police report, Burdick was driving the off-road vehicle while intoxicated, with a blood alcohol content of .213, nearly three times the legal limit. Burdick was seriously injured in the crash, but has since recovered.
Burdick remains in the St. Lucie County Jail, with bond set at $81,000.
Stay up-to-date: The latest headlines and weather from WPBF 25
Get the latest news updates with the WPBF 25 News app. You can download it here.
Your neighborhood: Local coverage from WPBF 25 News