Charges filed against driver of truck in fatal motorcycle crash
Second-degree murder was one of the three charges contained in the criminal complaint filed Thursday in Yuma Justice Court against 54-year-old Jeffrey Warner Cloud, who was arrested after a crash on Highway 95 in which a motorcycle rider was killed.
The other two charges that were filed against Cloud are aggravated assault and aggravated driving under the influence of intoxicating liquor.
The man riding the motorcycle was later identified as 60-year-old Byron D. McClure of Winterhaven.
Cloud was informed of the charges against him by Justice of the Peace Russ Jones, who also scheduled his next court appearance as a preliminary hearing for 4 p.m. on June 1.
As for Cloud’s bail amount, he ordered that it be set as a $250,000 cashonly bond, which was the amount that the Yuma County Attorney’s Office had requested.
Prior to setting bail, however, a member of the victim’s family was present and he asked the court to consider that the entire family is still struggling to cope with the loss when the judge decides on an appropriate bond amount.
An attorney from the Yuma County Public Defenders Office, who was representing Cloud only for the purpose of the hearing, asked that the bond be reduced. The attorney said that Cloud is suffering from Stage 4 colon cancer and has strong ties to the community.
According to information provided by a Department of Public Safety spokesperson, a traffic collision between a motorcycle and a Ford pickup truck occurred at 5:46 p.m. on State Route 95 near milepost 34.
Cloud was driving a Ford pickup truck southbound on Highway 95 when he failed to negotiate a curve in the road and drifted into the oncoming lane of traffic, DPS said. As a result, Cloud’s pickup truck struck McClure’s motorcycle head-on. He died at the scene from his injuries.
Cloud, who was uninjured, was taken into custody by DPS troopers and booked into the Yuma County Jail on the charge of second-degree homicide.
James Gilbert can be reached at jgilbert@yumasun.com or 5396854. Find him on Facebook at www. Facebook.com/YSJamesGilbert or on Twitter @YSJamesGilbert.