A federal grand jury has found an Alexandria, Virginia, man guilty of causing a crash while speeding on the George Washington Parkway that resulted in a motorcyclist losing a leg back in April.
Menyelek M. Maynard, 26, was found guilty of assault resulting in serious bodily injury, reckless driving and speeding.
According to court records, witnesses told police that the 20-year-old motorcyclist had changed lanes in order to avoid something in the road. As the man on the bike did that, he was struck by Maynard’s Toyota Camry, which police believe at the time was going more than 100 mph.
The crash, according to the Office of the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, sent the motorcyclist flying 30 feet into the air, with the motorcycle sent some 100 yards down the road.
One of the motorcyclist’s legs below the knee was amputated during the crash. The rider also had to have steel rods put into both of his arms and in his back and has lost feeling in his left arm and left side, according to prosecutors.
Prosecutors said that during the crash, Maynard rolled his car several times, his car almost hitting people on a footpath before it landed upside down in the Potomac River.
According to court records, several people stopped to help, including one person who was a military medical professional. That person placed a tourniquet on the motorcycle rider’s leg until first responders could arrive. Prosecutors credit those who stopped with saving the motorcyclist’s life.
Maynard will be sentenced in the case in January. He faces up to 10 years in prison.
