WALLER COUNTY, Texas — A decision is expected soon on any charges against a teen driver accused of hitting six cyclists. The Waller County District Attorney's Office posted on Facebook that the potential charges could be announced on Nov 8.
Waller police said the cyclists were hit by a truck in September while training for Ironman Texas. A witness said the teen was harassing them and blew exhaust fumes in their faces before crashing into them. The teen stayed at the scene and spoke to police, but hasn’t been charged.
The investigation on the crash is still active, but the county District Attorney's Office and Chief of Police have made statements on Facebook. The District Attorney's Office said the case was not being handled appropriately by investigators and they chose not to reach out to the office when advised to do so. They also confirmed that the teen has connections to Waller city officials but say there’s no evidence of those connections playing a role in the investigation.
Police Chief Bill Llewellyn agreed with mishandling claims but denied that it had anything to do with the driver’s connections.
“To put it quite simply,” he wrote, “they were due to the lack of knowledge on our part and those shortcomings are being dealt with internally and will not be repeated.”
Llewellyn also denied the District Attorney's claim that they weren’t contacted about the crash. He said a police supervisor at the scene tried to call two people from their office, but no one answered.
“My sergeant was counseled regarding failing to leave a message,” he wrote, “but I would also suggest that if the office head wishes to decrease his frustration, he should recommend to his employees that they answer their phone when ‘on call.’”