The family of a man killed while walking his daughter to a school bus stop is suing the employer of the driver of a van who hit him.

Jeffrey “Todd” Kimberlin, 38, of Fruitland Park, on the morning of Sept. 21 had been walking with his daughter to the bus stop when he was struck by a 2001 Ford van driven by 27-year-old Dylan Roberts of Ocklawaha. The van was owned by Russell’s Aluminum Inc.

Kimberlin, a beloved local tattoo artist, was transported to Ocala Regional Medical Center, where he later died of injuries suffered when he was struck by the van.

Roberts is facing a charge of driving without a valid license causing death. He had three previous convictions for driving while license suspended. He remains free on bond.

In addition, the two mothers of Kimberlin’s three children have joined forces in a lawsuit against Roberts and his employer. Kimberlin left behind a three-year-old son he had with Carrie Monique Snell, as well as a 9-year-old daughter and an 8-year-old son he had with Ronni Leigh Kimberlin.

The women have accused Russell’s Aluminum of being “vicariously negligent” and claim the children have lost “parental companionship and protection.” They also contend that Kimberlin’s estate has “incurred medical expenses, funeral expenses, loss of net accumulations and loss of earnings.”

Russell’s Aluminum is owned by Joseph Russell and located at 16201 SE 58th Avenue in Summerfield.

The women are represented by the law firm of Oldham & Smith in Tavares.

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Marion County sheriff’s deputies hurried to Lake Weir High School last week after receiving a call for help from coaches at the facility.

When deputies arrived at the school, located at 10351 SE Maricamp Rd., early last Thursday night, they found 46-year-old Taj A. Jones on the ground at the second base area of the facility’s baseball field. Jones, of Bothell, Wash., was “screaming and causing a disturbance,” a sheriff’s office report states.

Deputies detained Jones and put him in handcuffs, then spoke with three of the school’s coaches who told them that Jones jumped a chain-link fence by the facility’s agriculture farm while they were conducted a baseball practice. They said Jones then took off his shirt and shoes and “began running around the baseball and soccer field,” the report says.

Due to the nature of Jones “peculiar” behavior, the coaches believed their students weren’t safe, so they pulled them into the dugout. The coaches also asked Jones to leave but he refused to do so, the report says.

Jones was transported to the Marion County Jail and charged with charged with trespassing on school grounds and disturbing the peace/interfering with school administration functions. He is being held on no bond and is scheduled to appear in court on Nov. 28 to answer to the charges.

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