A police investigation into a fatal accident involving a tractor trailer and motorcycle last year determined that neither driver was distracted by a cell phone or traveling at an unsafe speed.
But police said they have video evidence from the truck, driven by Alexander Harb of Alabama, proving that he didn’t see the motorcycle until after deciding to turn left at the intersection. Both drivers, coming from opposite directions, had solid green lights at the time.
As a result of the turn, Simsbury resident Nathan Eberly, 24, collided with the truck and suffered fatal injuries.
Harb, 61, is charged with negligent homicide with a motor vehicle and failure to yield the right of way.
An affidavit supporting his arrest provides the following details:
Around 3:30 a.m. Sept. 30, police were called to the intersection of Sullivan Avenue and Rye Street.
Harb had pulled into a nearby gas station after the accident, while Eberly and his motorcycle were in the roadway. Eberly did not have a pulse and was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics.
Harb told police that he had driven up from Maryland that morning, after a 14-hour break. He said he was well rested, and police found no evidence of drug or alcohol intoxication.
Harb said that as he began turning left onto Rye Street he saw the headlight of Eberly’s motorcyle and then they collided.
A dashboard camera from Harb’s truck captured the incident with angles facing inside and out the windshield.
The outward-facing camera captured the light of Eberly’s motorcycle as it approached the intersection, while the inward-facing camera captured the moment that Harb noticed Eberly after already beginning his turn. Harb had a look of surprise on his face and used an expletive.
The affidavit also provides some information about Eberly, suggesting that he should not have been driving that night.
Police noted that Eberly’s license was suspended at the time because he had been arrested for driving under the influence and had failed to appear in court for that charge. He was charged with DUI in 2018 and 2020.
Police said Eberly’s motorcycle also wasn’t registered and hadn’t been since 2020, when it belonged to someone else. It had not been reported stolen.
Additionally, Eberly was under the influence of marijuana at the time of the accident, and had a higher level of amphetamine in his system than was typical for those who take prescriptions such as Adderall, the police report states.
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