The man alleged to have been driving this pick-up truck that killed five cyclists after hitting a training spin from behind has been charged and now faces life in prison if convicted.
A man alleged to have been driving a pick-up truck that struck nine cyclists, killing five and injuring four, has been charged with a range of criminal offences.
The accused man, Charles Pickett Jr (50), has been charged with five counts of second-degree murder in relation to those killed.
He also faces four counts of reckless driving causing serious impairment relating to the cyclists who were injured but have survived.
The second degree murder charge is punishable in the US with up to life imprisonment and the reckless driving charge carries a maximum jail term of five years on conviction.
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Those killed in the collision in Michigan on Tuesday evening, when hit from behind while on a group ride, have been named.
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They were: Debra Ann Bradley, 53; Melissa Ann Fevig-Hughes, 42; Tony Nelson, 73; Larry Paulik, 74; and Suzanne Joan Sippel, 56.
The injured have been named as: Paul Douglas Gobble, 47; Sheila Diane Jeske, 53; Jennifer Lynn Johnson, 40; and Paul Lewis Runnels, 65.
The crash occurred in Michigan when a pick-up truck hit the riders near Cooper Township, Kalamazoo.
In the 30 minutes before the collision, just after 6.30pm, the local police had received several complaints about how the vehicle was being driven and was searching for it when the fatal crash occurred.
The damage to the vehicle disabled it and when the driver was unable to continue in the pick-up he got out and tried to flee on foot but was arrested by the local police a short distance away.
The five cyclists who died were killed instantly and were pronounced dead at the scene. The crash is one of the worst in that region of the US involving cyclists.
“I think this is one of the worst, if not the worst, bicycling-motorist accidents in the county,” Paul Selden, director of road safety with the Kalamazoo Bicycle Club said.
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