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Winter Park High Teacher Arrested in Casselberry Hit-and-Run That Injured Student

Prosecutors classify the case as a felony because the teen’s broken back qualifies as great bodily harm.

Overview

  • Benjamin Fottler, 50, was arrested at his residence on a warrant tied to a Dec. 11, 2025 crash that injured a 15-year-old student in Casselberry.
  • He is charged with leaving the scene, failing to render aid, and failing to report the crash, and prosecutors have filed felony counts due to the severity of the injuries.
  • Authorities say the crash occurred on State Road 436 as Landon Cates was riding a scooter to school, and a witness stopped to help after the driver left.
  • According to an arrest report, Fottler told police he believed he hit a traffic sign while taking his daughter to daycare and did not stop.
  • Fottler is held at the John E. Polk Correctional Facility on $20,000 bond, while Cates wears a back brace, remains out of school, and awaits word on possible surgery.