An online petition has been filed which calls for harsher charges against the truck driver that crashed into a group of 6 bikers on the side of Interstate 85.
The incident occurred last week on July 17th in Greensboro, North Carolina, when the truck driver veered off the road and hit a group of motorcyclist that were parked on the side of the highway. Troopers said they believe the driver, 34-year-old Daniel Serna, fell asleep behind the wheel.
Early reports indicated that the five motorcyclists were taking a break from riding, but it was later reported that the men had pulled over in order to tend to a mechanical issue with one of the bikes.
Serna was charged with felony hit-and-run and a misdemeanor death by vehicle charge on the day of the accident. He was charged with a 2nd misdemeanor death after a second biker in the group died in the hospital over the weekend.
According to reports, the truck crashed into the group of bikers at roughly 80 to 85 miles per hour. The driver continued down the highway after hitting the bikers, stopping roughly half a mile away due to a flat tire.
Now, members of the motorcycle community Ryderz Haven Motorcycle Ministry are fighting for more severe charges against the truck driver. They believe the two misdemeanor death charges should be changed to felony death charges.
They’ve launched a petition, which has garnered more than 4,000 signatures in less than 24 hours. It states:
We as motorcyclist feel that this is an injustice. Let’s stand for our fellow riders our sister and brothers. These men were fathers and sons dear to their families. Please sign with us.
The driver of the truck claims that he was illegally arrested because he only speaks Spanish and none of the arresting officers spoke Spanish. He passed a sobriety test at the scene of the accident.
