Prosecutor: Deputy not to blame for death of bicyclist

A Broward Sheriff’s deputy who hit a bicycle rider who had fallen into traffic was not to blame for the fatal crash because there wasn’t enough time to stop, according to state prosecutors.

Deputy Sean Reyka was on duty and texting when he was responding to a call on North Dixie Highway in Pompano Beach on Nov. 28, 2017. He had just left a chiropractor appointment and received a text to confirm his next appointment. As he typed “c” to confirm, and hit the send button, he saw the cyclist fall into his lane in front of him, but there was a car to his left so he could not swerve.

Reyka’s body camera video shows him “passing the railroad tracks heading north on Dixie Highway. He became engaged reading and responding to a text message. After one or two seconds the video shows Reyka grabbing the steering wheel and steering … at the same time a visible shake is occurring,” according to a memo written by Assistant Broward State Attorney Michael Horowitz.

John Mancini, 60, of Pompano Beach, was dragged under Reyka’s 2016 Ford Explorer SUV and died at the scene in the 1400 block of North Dixie Highway.

Investigators from the Florida Highway patrol’s Homicide Unit in Fort Myers, who took over the case to avoid any conflicts, said surveillance video from nearby businesses, as well as statements from witnesses, indicate Reyka had not been speeding in the marked Ford Explorer SUV he was driving.

A roommate said Mancini had medical issues that caused balance problems and that he had fallen before.

The independent consultant hired by investigators did a

reconstruction of the crash scene and reported that texting had not been a factor in the incident and that there wasn’t enough time to react after the cyclist fell into the traffic lane.

“Based on the perception/reaction time and stopping distance needed in this case, once Mancini fell into the right northbound lane of traffic, the crash could not have been avoided,” Horowitz wrote. “There is no evidence that Deputy Reyka was driving recklessly at the time of the crash to support a criminal charge of vehicular homicide. Deputy Reyka was not at fault for this crash.”

Sean Reyka is the son of Sgt. Chris Reyka, the Broward deputy who was fatally ambushed by a gunman during a midnight stop in August 2007.

Sean Reyka returned to road patrol in Pompano Beach in April. In October, he started working in the Dania Beach district, according to the Sheriff ’s Office.

Reyka