Sacaton man gets 27 years for Gilbert bicyclist's death
Last Update: 11/06/2009 12:50 pm
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Dan Neligh
ABC15.comPHOENIX -- A Sacaton man was sentenced to 27 years in prison on Thursday for hitting and killing a bicyclist.
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Webster Norris III, 44, was found guilty of second degree murder for the 2008 vehicular homicide of a bicyclist on the Gila River Indian Reservation.
Authorities say that on September 20, 2008 Norris and a female colleague had been drinking and driving throughout the Chandler, Maricopa, Casa Blanca, Casa Grande and Sacaton communities. According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Norris had consumed a 12-pack and multiple 40-ounce cans of beer.
The passenger, who allegedly warned Norris to slow down approximately 10 times, said that Norris' speed reached as high as 90 mph.
Norris passed two vehicles and hit a 60-year-old man from Gilbert, AZ who was cross-training for a marathon. The impact of the collision was at such a high speed that the bicyclist's left arm and hand were amputated and flew into the back seat of Norris' car, according to authorities.
Allegedly, evidence showed that Norris did not slow down before or after hitting the victim. After driving down the road, he pulled over and told the passenger to get out and run.
Norris was found 48 hours after the accident, and claimed to have no memory of the incident due to his extreme intoxication.
Norris had been convicted of Aggravated DUI in Arizona and had been arrested twice in 2007 for drunk driving on the Gila River Indian Reservation.
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