Report: Driver accused of hitting cyclist nearly 3 times over limit

MacKenzie Elmer
Tue August 18 2015
Posted Aug 18, 2015
6,669

The driver accused of slamming into a cyclist Sunday and critically injuring him was nearly three times over the legal alcohol limit, according to a preliminary breath test.

Officials rushed to file a search warrant that would allow a county medical examiner to take a blood sample from the uncooperative driver, Jonathan Levya Rodriguez, 31. Rodriguez allegedly struck Gregary Wade Franck, 41, who was participating in the Urban Assault bike ride Sunday morning.

The crash happened at about 10 a.m. near Grand Avenue and 51st Street, near Temple B'Nai Jeshurun, according to a Des Moines police report.

"The cycling community is a tight-knit group. It's not really a person; it's like part of the army," said Kyle Robinson, owner of Kyle's Bikes in Ankeny where Franck has worked as a sales manager for about five years.

Family members have requested that Franck's condition be kept private, according to Iowa Methodist Medical Center personnel. Friends and co-workers said they were told he remained in critical condition Monday.

Robinson wasn't on Sunday's ride, but visited Franck, who goes by "Wade," at the hospital Sunday night.

"When he got hit, he catapulted, like, 30 feet ... that's three stories," Robinson said. "I'm sure any one of those witnesses feel like it was the grace of God that it wasn't them."

Two other cyclists were injured in the crash: a 41-year-old man hurt his calf and elbow, and a 40-year-old woman hurt her back and sustained a road rash to her legs.

Leaving the scene

When a vehicle barreled through a group of cyclists, someone at the scene memorized the license plate number and gave it to police.

The plates were registered to a West Des Moines address, and officers found the damaged car parked in the 400 block of Third Street at about 10:16 a.m., according to the report.

A woman answered and said Rodriguez was in the shower. Rodriguez had a cut to his cheek, and he was taken to the Des Moines police station for questioning at about 11:10 a.m.

Rodriguez was handcuffed and detained in the OWI testing room. Police noted he spoke with slurred and mumbled speech. His eyes were bloodshot and watery.