July 22, 2026 – The Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority has agreed to pay $300,000 to 37 victims of the April, 2025 incident in which a private vessel collided at a high speed with its slow-moving Clearwater Ferry. One person died. Ferry captain Dennis Kimerer was fined $500 in May of this year for operating the ferry without a working stern light (the collision happened after dark). The boat’s operator, former Jannus Live owner Jeffry Knight, faces eight felony counts of leaving the scene of a boating accident involving death and/or serious bodily injury, along with several victim lawsuits.
