Driver convicted of murder was high on meth, going 90 mph before hitting motorcyclist
A Modesto man on Thursday pleaded guilty to second-degree murder for driving high on methamphetamine before careening off Highway 99 and killing a motorcyclist nearly three years ago.
Brian Michael Correll also pleaded guilty to vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated with gross negligence and being a felon in possession of a gun, according to Deputy District Attorney Anthony Colacito, who prosecuted the case.
Michael Namauleg, 36, of Stockton was the motorcyclist whose body was pinned beneath Correll’s pickup. He was pronounced dead at the scene. He was the father of two young children.
Correll, 34, will be sentenced to 15 years in prison. As part of a plea deal to avoid a trial scheduled to start Oct. 16, Correll agreed to waive the time he has spent in jail awaiting trial. That means Correll started serving his prison sentence Thursday.
The deadly crash occurred about 7:45 p.m. Oct. 28, 2015. The California Highway Patrol has said Correll was speeding north on Highway 99, about a half mile north of the Briggsmore Avenue overpass in Modesto.
Correll was driving a gold 2001 Chevrolet Silverado pickup. He had no passengers. One witness told investigators he was weaving through traffic and cut her off. She said Correll was driving much faster than her speed of 82 mph. She was about to call 911 when the crash happened in front of her.
The pickup rear-ended a Ford Flex sport utility vehicle in the far left lane before it veered to the right and struck a Dodge Avenger sedan in the middle lane. Authorities said the pickup continued careening to the right off the highway and crashed through a fence.
Namauleg was riding his motorcycle south on Sisk Road, which parallels Highway 99. The motorcyclist was in front of the Plaza Parkway Shopping Center to meet up with his cousin at the nearby Modesto Hotel, his family has said.
The careening pickup went through the fence and “crushed” Namauleg on his motorcycle, according to filed court documents by the prosecution. Namauleg suffered “massive” injuries to virtually every part of his body.
The passengers in the first vehicle – two adults and four children – escaped serious injury, according to the CHP. The second vehicle that was hit pulled over on the right side of the highway, and there was no immediate report of injury.
Correll suffered minor injuries in the crash and was treated at Memorial Medical Center before he was booked at the Stanislaus County Jail. Prosecutors said a blood test confirmed Correll had meth and amphetamine in his system.
Investigators found inside the pickup a duffel bag that had marijuana, syringes, a knife and a weight scale, according to prosecutors. They found another bag in the pickup that also had marijuana.
A loaded .40 caliber Glock handgun was found on the right passenger floorboard, the prosecution said. Investigators also found a gun magazine fully loaded with .40 caliber bullets in a lock box in the pickup.
At the time, Correll’s criminal record stretched back to 2001, including various drug, theft and traffic charges, according to Stanislaus Superior Court records.
The CHP’s Multidisciplinary Accident Investigation Team, which inspected and analyzed the pickup, determined the Chevy Silverado was going 90 mph with its throttle at 100 percent a second before the crash, according to court documents. The investigators said it also appeared Correll had downshifted from drive to third gear before the crash.
On Friday, Correll remained in custody at the jail. He is scheduled to return to court Oct. 16, when he will be formally sentenced. He then will be transferred to prison to serve the remainder of his sentence.
This story was originally published September 21, 2018 at 1:06 PM.