NEW LONDON, Conn. — A Connecticut man charged with causing a fiery crash that shut down a major highway bridge and killed a truck driver has died of cancer.
Reginald Collins, 60, died on Dec. 1, 2024, prompting the negligent homicide and other charges he faced to be officially dropped in New London Superior Court in January, The Day reports.
Collins’ lawyer called the dismissal “somewhat bittersweet” for his family.
“Obviously, they were happy that the charges were dropped however we would have liked Reginald to be present to hear it for himself,” Anthony Basilica said in an email Jan. 31. “Personally, I was shocked he was ever charged in the first place.”
The span, which is state’s largest passenger and truck bridge, links New London and Groton along Interstate 95, a major artery between New York and Boston.
Police said Collins had stopped in the right lane of the highway when his vehicle’s tire blew out.
A fuel delivery truck then crashed into Collins’ car, flipped over and caught fire, spilling some 2,200 gallons of home heating oil, some of which entered the river.
The 42-year-old truck driver was killed, while Collins and his passenger were pulled to safety by other motorists.
Police said Collins created a “traffic hazard” by failing to activate his car’s hazard lights and pull onto the shoulder of the road.
Collins maintained he couldn’t pull over because his car was disabled.
“Dash cam video from a passing motorist shows Mr. Collins’ vehicle stopped for over 20 seconds. Others who passed by had no difficulty maneuvering around him,” Basilica said Jan. 31. “In the end this was a tragic accident that could have been avoided.”
Collins had pleaded not guilty to negligent homicide with a motor vehicle, improper parking, failure to register his vehicle and illegally operating a vehicle without proper insurance coverage.
The Associated Press is an independent global news organization dedicated to factual reporting. Founded in 1846, AP today remains the most trusted source of fast, accurate, unbiased news in all formats and the essential provider of the technology and services vital to the news business. The Trucker Media Group is subscriber of The Associated Press has been granted the license to use this content on TheTrucker.com and The Trucker newspaper in accordance with its Content License Agreement with The Associated Press.
