No criminal charges to be filed in death of Phenix City cyclist Sean Rey
After an independent investigation, the Alabama attorney general’s office has determined that no criminal charges will be filed against two motorists in the April 2015 death of Phenix City cyclist Sean Rey.
Assistant Attorney General John Kachelman confirmed that no charges would be filed and the case was not presented to a grand jury. He did not discuss the details or reasoning.
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The attorney general’s office took the case in June when Russell County District Attorney Kenneth Davis recused his office after a meeting with Rey’s parents, Brenda and Skip Rey.
The Reys met with representatives from the attorney general’s office on March 9, Brenda Rey said in a Facebook message Tuesday.
“They had come to the decision/conclusion that Sean’s death was ‘just a tragic, unfortunate accident’ and they were not going to be presenting the case before the grand jury,” Brenda Rey wrote.
Brenda Rey was not pleased with that decision.
“The Alabama attorney general’s office continued to give us tentative dates for the case to go before the grand jury, the first one was supposed to be in December, the second one in February and then all of a sudden they dropped it?” she wrote. “I cannot understand for the life of me why the individuals at least did not even get a traffic citation or any charges whatsoever. My child is dead at the hands of two individuals and the city and state is OK with that? I think not. It will never be OK.”
Phenix City Police Chief Ray Smith said that there would be no criminal charges coming out of his office.
“It is a horrific accident and we don’t have anybody we can hold criminally libel, and the attorney general’s office agreed with that,” Smith said.
The attorney general’s office conducted its own investigation on top of what was done by the Phenix City Police, Smith said.
Around 6 a.m. April 2, Sean Rey was traveling north on his bicycle in the 3600 block of Summerville Road when he collided with a white 1992 Ford pick-up truck that turned in front of him at 36th Street and Summerville Road, police said. The truck was driven by Rebecca Roberts, then 21, of Phenix City, Police Chief Ray Smith has previously stated. Roberts turned around and stopped her truck, police said.
Rey was hit a second time moments later as he laid in Summerville Road, according to police. That driver, who is suspected to be Forest Duncan, then 82, left the scene.
Sean Rey, 26, worked at the Chevron on Summerville Road and was about 25 yards from it when he was hit. Sean Rey was in Midtown Medical Center for two weeks before succumbing to injuries suffered in the crash.
Duncan's vehicle was found at a Columbus repair shop after he took the sedan in because it was overheating due to damage to the radiator, police have stated. Evidence from the car was sent to the state crime lab.
Duncan once worked as a bailiff in the Russell County Courthouse and his son currently holds that position. Duncan is the father-in-law of Alabama state Rep. Chris Blackshear.
Chuck Williams: 706-571-8510, @chuckwilliams
This story was originally published March 22, 2016 at 2:44 PM with the headline "No criminal charges to be filed in death of Phenix City cyclist Sean Rey."