The scene of a fatal crash on Shelburne Road in Shelburne, Vermont, in Nov. 2024.
A Vermont police officer involved in a crash that killed a bicyclist was driving over the speed limit and playing a YouTube video at the time of the crash, NBC affiliate WPTZ-TV reports.
Court documents obtained by the news station provide new details on the case against Shelburne Police Sgt. Kyle Kapitanski, who was charged with gross negligent operation with death resulting after a November 2024 crash that killed cyclist Sean Hayes.
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According to court documents, Kapitanski's department-issue tablet was being used to play YouTube in the moments before the crash. Footage from his body camera shows him changing from YouTube back to a computer-aided dispatch program moments after the crash.
The documents also note that Hayes did not have lights or reflectors on his bicycle or the trailer he was towing at the time of the crash, and describe him as wearing "inconspicuous" clothing. Surveillance footage from a nearby bank show Hayes stopping on Shelburne Road, getting off his bike and apparently making adjustments to his vehicle. He is walking alongside the bicycle, still in the road, before he was hit by Kapitanski's cruiser.
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Kapitanski was traveling 5 miles over the speed limit at the time of the crash, court documents state.
An autopsy found that Hayes died of blunt force trauma to the head.
A judge ruled there was probable cause to charge Kapitanski with gross negligence earlier this month. His attorney tried to have the charge dismissed, arguing that prosecutors cannot prove beyond reasonable double that he was grossly negligent based on his speed. He is due in court on March 13 to answer the charges.
