A Littlestown man was driving at least 73 mph when his car crossed the center line in May, killing a motorcyclist who had just pulled from his driveway, according to testimony Tuesday at a preliminary hearing.
Robbie Lee Ridinger, 22, of 100 S. Queen St., is charged in the death of 54-year-old Joseph Dean Duman Jr.
Liberty Township police allege Ridinger was driving drunk when he failed to handle a sharp turn in the 1600 block of Bull Frog Road in Freedom Township and struck Duman’s motorcycle head-on.
District Justice John Zepp III heard testimony from three police officers who responded to the May 29 crash. All charges – including a vehicular homicide charge added by prosecutors Tuesday – were forwarded to Adams County court.
Joe Duman’s wife, Cheri Duman, said she was not surprised to hear of the 73-mph estimate.
“I saw (the crash) so I know,” she said after the hearing. “By the time I heard brakes, he had already hit the motorcycle and (Joe) was in the air. I knew he hit him fast.”
Cumberland Township Officer Brand Briggs, testified that Pennsylvania State Police helped him reconstruct the crash scene.
A final report on the crash is not yet complete.
Briggs said police estimated Ridinger’s speed by skid marks his 2003 Nissan Sentra left on the road. The posted speed limit in that stretch is 40 mph, he said.
Liberty Township Police Chief James Holler Jr., who responded to the crash and filed the charges against Ridinger, was the first to take the stand.
Paramedics were performing CPR on Duman when Holler arrived to the scene, he testified. Duman was later pronounced dead at Gettysburg Hospital.
Holler said he walked up to a group of about four or five people standing by the porch at the Dumans’ home and asked if they saw who was driving the car involved in the crash.
Ridinger responded that he was the driver and was interviewed by Holler.
Holler testified he smelled alcohol on Ridinger’s breath. Ridinger’s eyes were bloodshot, his speech was slurred and his balance was off during field sobriety tests, Holler testified.
Ridinger told police he had a few beers before the crash – the last around 3 a.m., according to charging documents. A test showed Ridinger’s blood-alcohol content was 0.144 percent. Under Pennsylvania law, a blood-alcohol level of 0.08 is considered drunk.
Ridinger did not testify on his behalf Tuesday.
Also called to testify was Cumberland Township police officer Steve Higgs, who transported Ridinger to the hospital for blood tests.
Ridinger made several unsolicited statements at the hospital, admitting that he had been drinking and was going to test positive for alcohol, Higgs testified.
Ridinger allegedly said, “I didn’t realize how drunk I was until about an hour ago when I almost fell asleep in the patrol vehicle on the way to the hospital,” Higgs testified.
About 6:45 a.m., Duman waved to his wife as he drove east past his home on Bullfrog Road, police said. Duman was heading to the annual Memorial Day “Rolling Thunder” ride to Washington, D.C., when Ridinger’s car hit the motorcycle he was riding.
Duman fell from his 1996 Honda Shadow Ace 1100, which spun around, continued about 100 feet and burst into flames near a barn across the street from Duman’s home, police said.
Ridinger is charged with driving under the influence of a high rate of alcohol, homicide by vehicle, homicide by vehicle while driving under the influence and reckless driving.
He is also charged with failure to drive on the right side of the road, failure to drive on roadways laned for traffic and failure to drive at a safe speed.
Ridinger’s lawyer, Justin J. McShane of Harrisburg, argued against the DUI-high rate of alcohol charge because he said there is no evidence suggesting Ridinger was tested within two hours of driving the car, as required by law.
But Zepp did not withdraw or amend the charge.
“I think there’s still some questions in this case that need to be answered,” McShane said after the hearing.
Duman’s family said they were happy with the outcome of Tuesday.
“I’m just glad it’s going to go forward,” Cheri Duman said.
She had planned to ride with her husband of 24 years that morning, but couldn’t because she broke her arm the week before.
They had four children together and 10 grandchildren.
In addition to Duman’s wife, his friends Ron Roberts and Stephen and Karen Henry, also attended the hearing.
Stephen Henry said police and prosecutors have been “top-notch.”
Police have been cracking down on speeding in the area where the crash occurred, he said.
“Drunk driving affects more than the one person,” Ron Roberts said. “It affects the family and friends.”
Ridinger is scheduled to appear for an Aug. 22 arraignment in Adams County court.
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