On August 12, 2025, Herby Dufresne, 30, Faniola Joseph, 37, and Rodrigue Dor, 54, were traveling for work in St. Lucie County.
Faniola had been living in Indiana and had come south to purchase goods to resell in her shop. Riding in a minivan, the group's vehicle became wedged underneath a semi-truck when its driver allegedly attempted an illegal U-turn in a clearly marked “No U-turn” zone.
All three people in the minivan were killed.
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The truck driver, Harjinder Singh, worked for White Hawk Carriers — a company with a troubling safety record.
Now, Joseph’s only child, Angeline Dowdian, has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Singh, White Hawk and freight broker C.H. Robinson, alleging negligence and unsafe practices that led to the tragedy.
A Daughter’s Loss
Angeline, who is 22 years old, lived in another country at the time of the crash and had not seen her mother in person in six years, though they spoke daily via video calls. On the day of the crash, she missed a call from her mother — something she says haunts her.
“She sent me a voice message. She said, ‘Angeline, where are you?’ This is the first message I go to every morning,” Angeline said through tears. “I lost my everything, my soul, my supporters. My body is here, but my soul died with her.”
Angeline described her mother as both parents to her, since her father rejected her at birth.
“She was my mother, my father… the only one in my family. I’m living all alone now," she said.
She says she still longs to visit her mother’s grave, bring flowers, and tell her, “I love you, I’m sorry, and I miss you.” But visa restrictions have prevented her from traveling.
The Legal Case
Angeline is represented by attorney Dax Bello of Stuart Tillman, Fox, Bianchi & Kane, and co-counsel Mark Brumer of Brumer & Brumer.
Bello argues that the crash was not an accident.
“This is not an accident — it’s a predictable end. That came at the cost of three lives,” Bello said.
The lawsuit alleges that C.H. Robinson, a multibillion-dollar freight broker, knowingly gave business to White Hawk Carriers despite serious safety violations in its record.
Transportation expert James Lewis has publicly described White Hawk’s violations as “very egregious.”
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WPTV has reached out to C.H. Robinson for comment and we are still waiting on a response.
Bello says the case is bolstered by a May 14 U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Montgomery v. Caribbean Transport, which clarified that federal law does not shield freight brokers from state negligence claims when unsafe drivers are placed on the road. That ruling involved the same broker named in Angeline’s case.
Quoting Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s concurring opinion, Bello noted: “Not all truck accidents can be prevented, but some can. Some carriers are known to be less safe, and some truck drivers are known to be unfit.”
Accountability in the Trucking Industry
Bello insists that brokers and carriers have the responsibility to vet safety records — information that is publicly available online — before placing drivers on the road.
“Everybody has an incentive to put safe drivers on the road,” he said. “Bad motor carriers will be driven out of business because they won’t be selected.”
Brumer highlighted that litigation will seek to answer not only who caused the crash but who could have prevented it.
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White Hawk Carriers has since shut down, though Bello warns they may reopen under another name — a practice that is common in the industry.
“If I have anything to do with it, they won’t be," he said.
Civil and Criminal Proceedings
In addition to the civil case, Singh faces criminal traffic homicide charges in Florida.
Bello, a former homicide prosecutor, says he is helping Angeline navigate both cases, ensuring she understands proceedings under Marsy’s Law, which gives victims’ families rights to be heard and informed in criminal matters.
Angeline’s Wishes
No legal victory, Angeline says, will undo her pain.
“She’s gone, and that makes me suffer every day,” she said.
Yet she hopes the lawsuit can prevent other families from experiencing the same loss.
“I don’t want nobody suffer like me,” she said. “Loss of a mother… it makes you suffer in a way you want to kill yourself, because my mother was everything to me.”
Joseph had hoped Angeline would become a nurse.
“She always said, ‘When I’m sick, I want you to be the nurse who takes care of me.’ She’s not going to see that, not going to see her grandkids.”
Her mother would have turned 38 years old on May 26, 2026.
“She worked her whole life so I could have a better one, and died in such a terrible way. I didn’t even get the chance to tell her that I love her," she said.
Bello’s closing words sum up the case: “We’re sad to be part of this case but honored by the trust the family has given us. We’ll do everything possible to bring justice — for Angeline, for her mother, and for the friends who died alongside her.”
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
