Driver in Rehoboth fatal had previous DUI
The man police say caused the death of a cyclist just outside Rehoboth Beach had been charged with DUI six weeks earlier in nearly the same area.
According to court documents, Delaware State Police troopers who responded to a July 1 crash found Brian Meegan, his 2003 Jeep Wrangler and a bicycle in the CVS parking lot, off Service Road outside Rehoboth.
Court documents state that while driving in the merge lane, Meegan, 37, struck a bicycle being ridden by 44-year-old Russell Henman. Evidence showed that Meegan never stopped his vehicle; the bicycle left a clearly visible road scrape from the scene of the collision to the CVS parking lot. Police said Meegan never attempted to contact Delaware State Police to report the crash, and when they checked his vehicle, police found Meegan’s insurance had expired April 13.
The documents state, “It became obvious that Meegan was under the influence of alcohol. Meegan displayed slurred speech, glassy, blood shot eyes and his breath had a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage.” Meegan refused a field sobriety test, police said.
The documents say Henman’s bicycle had both front and rear lights: the front light was still operating after the crash, and pieces of the rear light were found at the scene.
Meegan was charged with first-degree vehicular homicide, leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death, driving under the influence of alcohol, failure to report a collision resulting in injury or death, inattentive driving and failure to have minimum insurance.
Meegan, who according to his Facebook page had moved to Rehoboth from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., in early May, still has Florida tags on his Jeep. He is originally from Garden City, N.Y., on Long Island.
Court records show Meegan was also charged May 24 with DUI following a 11:17 p.m. traffic stop at Church Street and Rehoboth Avenue Extended, only a short distance from where police say his Jeep struck Henman.
In the first incident, Meegan was charged with DUI, failure to have insurance identification in his possession and failure to have registration in his possession.
Court documents show his blood alcohol level in the first incident was 0.18, more than twice the legal limit of 0.08.On July 5, Meegan waived a preliminary hearing, and the case is being transferred to Superior Court.
Meegan's arraignment in the Henman crash is set Monday, July 9, in the Court of Common Pleas in Georgetown. His blood alcohol level was tested at Beebe Medical Center after the July 1 accident, but police did not report the results.
Cpl. Jeffrey Hale, spokesman for Delaware State Police, said, “The results of Mr. Meegan's BAC is pending testing by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner which could take some time.”
John Painter, spokesman for Department of Corrections, said Meegan was released July 3 on $27,000 bail from Howard R. Young Correctional Institution in Wilmington, where he had been transferred from Sussex Correctional Institution in Georgetown.
