“You’ll Get What You Deserve”: Dying Man’s Death Bed Accusation Lands Girlfriend a Homicide Charge

On Super Bowl weekend in Flagler County, Florida, a late-night argument inside a car spiraled into tragedy.

As Vince Gasparini reports for Syracuse.com, 22-year-old Daniel Waterman told investigators from his hospital bed that his girlfriend, 24-year-old Leigha Mumby, intentionally drove off Interstate 95 and into a tree after a heated dispute. 

He could barely speak, so detectives used a letter board while he sounded out each character, his mother said.

Waterman said the argument started over texts. He’d been messaging a friend in New York about the game – he was a Chiefs fan, the friend an Eagles fan – according to his mother’s account to Syracuse.com.

Then, he said, the driving changed. She slowed toward 50 mph as he tried to open the door and bail. Moments later, he told police, she accelerated to 80–90 mph.

The last words he remembered, he said, were chilling: “I don’t care what happens, you’ll get what you deserve.”

What The Data Showed – And Why It Matters

Investigators didn’t just rely on Waterman’s account. Gasparini notes that the car’s event data recorder backed up key details: acceleration, no braking, speed building toward impact.

That kind of hard data can be decisive. It can corroborate or contradict human memory. In this case, it aligned with what Waterman spelled out from his bed.

FOX 35 Orlando’s Chris Lindsay adds that troopers believe the vehicle was “speeding up at the time of impact,” and that Mumby “didn’t utilize her brakes.” 

In July, months after the crash, she was arrested on charges of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and reckless driving causing serious bodily injury, the station reported in its broadcast.

Waterman was still fighting for his life.

A Long Fight, A Sudden Turn, A Charge Upgraded

Waterman’s mother told Syracuse.com that after the arrest, her son was moved back to Syracuse. He began physical therapy at Upstate University Hospital, talked about starting a sports podcast, and – crucially – kept working.

Then everything shifted. Pneumonia set in.

On October 8, he died.

With Waterman’s death, prosecutors in Flagler County upgraded the case. Chris Lindsay reported that on Monday – just weeks later – Mumby was charged with vehicular homicide and later released on a $150,000 bond.

Gasparini’s reporting tracks the same timeline: early charges in July, slow recovery, death in October, and a homicide charge added soon after. It’s the kind of progression that often turns a serious crash case into a fatal-crash homicide, once causation is established.

Can A Dying Accusation Be Used In Court?

Waterman’s mother told Syracuse.com she worries her son’s statement may not be admissible. He’s gone; he can’t be cross-examined. A defense attorney will surely make that point.

Attorney and legal commentator Steve Lehto sees it differently.

In a video analysis, Lehto explains that the rules of evidence carve out a narrow but powerful exception for exactly this scenario. 

Under hearsay exceptions for an unavailable declarant – he cites the dying-declaration rule – statements made while believing death is imminent that describe the cause or circumstances of the declarant’s own death are generally admissible in a homicide prosecution.

Lehto’s plain-English breakdown is useful here. Admissibility isn’t the same as credibility. A judge can let the statement in; a jury still decides how much weight to give it. Was Waterman lucid? Was he medicated? Were there witnesses? Those are fair questions for cross-examination, Lehto notes.

But the threshold question – can the jury hear what he told police on his deathbed? – will likely be answered “yes,” so long as prosecutors can show the legal requirements are met. That’s why the detectives’ methodical approach – slowly recording every letter he chose – could matter a lot.

My view: jurors instinctively lean in when they hear final words. Prosecutors know that. Defense lawyers know it too. Expect a fierce pretrial fight over the exact contours of what Waterman said, when he said it, and how clearly he said it.

What Triggered The Crash, According To Family

Gasparini’s reporting supplies personal context. Waterman had traveled widely for a young man – Greece, Egypt, Jordan, the UAE. 

He loved sports, played basketball, and picked up construction and landscaping work. He was in Florida for a family trip and a side job with an uncle when the crash happened.

He was also preparing for fatherhood. His mother said he was taking online parenting courses from his hospital bed, promising never to break a promise to his child.

FOX 35’s Chris Lindsay reported that Mumby was pregnant at the time of the crash and recently gave birth. That development adds a delicate, human layer to an already hard case.

A Baby, A Family, And A Looming Court Fight

With Waterman gone and no formal paternity established before his death, his family’s rights are uncertain. Gasparini writes that his mother intends to fight to prove Waterman is the father and seek custody.

This will probably turn into a two-front legal battle: a criminal case in Florida and a family-court case that crosses state lines. Each moves at its own pace, with different standards and stakes.

My read: if DNA testing confirms paternity, the court still must weigh best-interest factors, parental rights, and any safety concerns. None of that will be simple while a homicide case is pending.

The Evidence Puzzle The Jury May See

If this case goes to trial, expect prosecutors to build a layered story using:

• The event data recorder showing rapid acceleration and lack of braking, as reported by Gasparini and echoed by Lindsay’s broadcast.
• Waterman’s dying declaration describing intent and the quoted “you’ll get what you deserve.”
• Physical-scene reconstruction aligning with a high-speed, straight-into-a-tree trajectory.
• Prior statements and texts that might speak to motive, anger, or intoxication, if any such evidence exists.

The defense will likely push back on each layer. Was the data recorder interpreted properly? Did mechanical issues exist? Was Waterman’s memory impaired? Could the quoted words be misheard or misremembered?

Lehto’s reminder is apt: admissibility opens the door, but credibility controls the room. Jurors will have to decide which puzzle pieces lock together and which don’t.

Intent, Rage, And The Law’s Sharp Edges

Vehicular homicide in cases like this can turn on intent and causation. If jurors believe this was a deliberate act following a threat, the legal path is clearer.

If they doubt the intent – if they see recklessness without purpose – the case shifts. The data recorder’s “no brakes, rising speed” profile will loom large over that debate.

In my opinion, the strongest facts for the state are the mechanical evidence and the alleged quote, because they reinforce each other. The strongest openings for the defense are the conditions of Waterman’s statement and any alternative explanations for the car’s behavior.

The Human Cost Behind The Headlines

Gasparini’s profile of Waterman is worth sitting with. A kid who loved sports. A traveler. A son who once climbed everything in sight and later promised to show up for his own child.

His mother says his dying wish was for the baby to be raised in New York with family. That’s the image that lingers: a young father-to-be, spelling out letters to police, fighting to stay alive long enough to be heard.

Lindsay’s report adds the present-day reality. A homicide charge filed. A $150,000 bond posted. A newborn at the center of a looming custody fight.

Lehto brings the legal clarity. The accusation is likely to reach a jury. What that jury does with it will decide everything else.

From here, watch for pretrial motions on hearsay, motions to suppress or limit expert testimony about the data recorder, and possible negotiations based on the strength of the state’s evidence.

Also watch family court. Establishing paternity could move quickly with testing. Custody is harder. Courts will balance parental rights, child safety, and best interests in the shadow of a criminal case.

The through-line across all three sources is simple and stark. A fight led to a crash. A young man found the strength to speak. Then he died. Now the system has to decide whose words – and which data – carry the most weight.

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The article “You’ll Get What You Deserve”: Dying Man’s Death Bed Accusation Lands Girlfriend a Homicide Charge first appeared on Survival World.