Woman Accused of Vengeful Fatal Crash Faces Jury After Boyfriend's Hospital Bill Is Dropped From Trial

Trial of Liga Mambi Opens as Prosecutors Allege He Sped Nearly 100 MPH Into Woods After Argument Over Another Girl's Messages

A Florida woman accused of intentionally crashing an SUV with her boyfriend inside became angry over text messages from another girl before careening into the woods at 100 mph, prosecutors told a jury Tuesday.

But Liga Mambi's defense attorney offered a different explanation as his trial began, suggesting that something happened inside the vehicle that he neither anticipated nor controlled.

Mumby, 25, has pleaded not guilty to vehicular homicide and careless driving causing serious bodily injury in the death of Daniel Waterman, 22, who survived the crash but died eight months later.

Assistant State's Attorney Melissa Clark told jurors the couple had left a Super Bowl party before the wreck on Interstate 95 in Flagler County on Feb. 9, 2025, according to a live television court broadcast.

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The SUV was traveling more than 100 miles per hour before the crash, Clark said. The car's data shows it was traveling at 94 mph in the final seconds before a "sudden, 45-degree left turn" sent it off the highway and into the woods.

The prosecutor described the turn as "a dangerous and reckless maneuver".

Clark said Waterman suffered a broken neck that left him paralyzed from the neck down. He went into a coma and when he woke up, he couldn't breathe on his own.

Clarke told jurors that her death on Oct. 8, 2025, was "directly related and caused by this accident." Waterman's own account of the accident she told detectives before she died.

From his hospital bed, he told investigators that Mombi intentionally veered off the road following an argument over another woman's texting. A judge ruled those statements inadmissible, and prosecutors were unable to present their version of events in court.

Daniel Waterman died on October 8, 2025 from injuries sustained in a car accident in February. (Heather Waterman via FOX35 Orlando WOFL)

Defense attorney Reed Hart called the case a "pure and utter tragedy" and urged jurors to consider whether the SUV's sudden change in direction was caused by something beyond Mambi's control.

"The content of this test effectively boils down to a command input and ultimately a question," Hart said, according to Court TV's live broadcast.

Hart questioned whether Momby chose to run off the road or whether something happened inside the vehicle that "he did not expect, anticipate or control."

He argued that when the vehicle started moving towards the forest, he failed to stop it despite trying to avoid the accident.

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Liga Mambi, 24, had her charges upgraded to vehicular homicide after Waterman's death. (Flagler County Sheriff)

Jurors also heard Tuesday from Sarah Steppenbeck, Waterman's cousin and Mumby's best friend, who hosted the Super Bowl gathering.

Steppenback testified that Mumby announced earlier that day that she had learned she was pregnant. But the news came amid concerns about Waterman's contact with other women.

Stuppenbeck testified that Mumby "expressed her concern about Daniel talking to other girls and said she wouldn't let Daniel cheat on her."

The couple left before the end of the game. Within 20 minutes, Stuppenback said, Mamby called him and yelled that Waterman was texting another girl and that he was going to take her home.

"He was yelling at me," Steppenbeck recalled.

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Steppenbeck said he did not hear Waterman talking in the background. He tried to calm Mambi and asked the couple to reach home safely and settle their differences the next day.

"He just said, 'You're taking his side,' and hung up on me," Stuppenbeck testified.

Steppenbeck said that about 20 minutes later, Mamby, still angry, called again and repeated that he was returning Waterman.

They never arrived. Instead, Stuppenbeck testified, Mumby's roommate called and told him to go to the hospital because he had been in an accident.

The trial is proceeding without Waterman reporting to investigators what happened inside the SUV.

The section of I-95 North in Flagler County, Florida, where the crash occurred in February 2025. (Google Maps)

Before his death, Waterman told Mumbai detectives he intentionally caused the incident after an argument over a text message from another woman, according to charging documents previously reported by Court Television.

He said the last thing he remembered was Mombi telling him before he swerved off the road: "I don't care what happens, you're going to get what you deserve."

Judge Dawn Nichols ruled that the statements could not be made in court. Prosecutors said they wanted jurors to hear Waterman's account, but acknowledged that evidence rules prevented them from being used in court, Court Television previously reported.

"The court is bound by the law and the court is bound by the rules of evidence," Nichols said when explaining the ruling.

The first day of Mumbi's trial also brought emotional moments for the Waterman family. His mother, Heather Waterman, was seen wiping away tears as a photo of her son was shown in court.

The court was adjourned until the following day on Tuesday.

Mumby was originally arrested in July 2025 on charges of reckless driving causing serious bodily injury and aggravated battery with a deadly weapon.

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After Waterman's death, prosecutors upgraded his charges to vehicular homicide. He was booked into the Flagler County Jail and released after posting $150,000 bond.

Waterman's mother previously said he spent some time in a coma and recovered enough to tell investigators what happened.

Tiffany Waterman expressed her displeasure at the omission of her nephew's statement in a Facebook post on Monday as jury selection began.