Bodman could face charges in bike/vehicle crash

COEUR d’ALENE — New evidence has been discovered in a two-year-old case involving an accident between a former Post Falls city councilman and a teenager on a bicycle in Spokane.

Criminal charges could be pending.

Former Councilman Joe Bodman is a Spokane Valley Sheriff’s Deputy who was responding on May 23, 2014, to a backup call for an officer that was not answering his radio.

According to news reports, Bodman was traveling at 70 miles per hour in a 35 mph zone without his lights or siren on. Witnesses say the victim, Ryan Holyk, was riding a BMX-style bicycle without brakes and rode into an intersection in the Spokane Valley against a red light when he noticed Bodman approaching at a high rate of speed.

News reports said Holyk quickly turned around, while Bodman swerved to avoid him. Holyk died from his injuries days later.

Four investigations had previously cleared Bodman from hitting Holyk, but the fifth investigation revealed new evidence that indicates Bodman’s police vehicle did in fact strike Holyk in the head.

According to Dr. Jarrod Carter, who was recently reviewing the evidence in the case, he discovered an imprint in the pit bumper of Bodman’s police vehicle that exactly matches a portion of the hat band that Holyk was wearing when he was hit.

"It indicates very clearly that the bumper did in fact hit Holyk's head," Dr. Carter said in a press conference on Wednesday.

With that new evidence, the Spokane County prosecutor told journalists on Wednesday that he intends take another look at the case to determine if any criminal charges will be brought against Bodman for the accident.

Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich said the new evidence does not prove who was at fault in the accident, but the case now warrants further review.

Since the accident occurred, the parents of Holyk have filed a civil lawsuit against the sheriff’s office. Knezovich said that suit has yet to be settled.

Last year police discovered trace amounts of DNA on Bodman’s vehicle, but prosecutors declined to press any criminal charges against him based on that evidence.