(AP) – Records show a motorist charged with killing a cyclist during California’s Tour de Palm Springs over the weekend was driving on a suspended license.
Mark Kristofferson of Washington State died Saturday after a car traveling at twice the speed limit barreled into cyclists racing in the 100-mile (160-kilometer) charity ride through the Coachella Valley desert. At least one other racer was seriously injured.
The driver, Ronnie Huerta Jr., faces vehicular manslaughter charges. He was released after posting $75,000 bail. It wasn’t immediately known if he has an attorney.
The Riverside Press-Enterprise reported Monday that the 21-year-old’s license had been suspended since Dec. 4 for being a negligent vehicle operator and failures to appear.
Witnesses said the car was going about 100 mph in a 55-mile-an-hour zone and passed another vehicle just before the collision.
“Witnesses did place him (driver) at over 100 miles per hour and that information came from several of the bicyclists…In this situation, the roadway had a long line of bicyclists, so a driver should be able to see that they need to reduce their speed,” said Sgt. Isaiah Kee with the CHP Indio office.
