PARRISH, Fla. — A former police officer has been charged for the death of a Bradenton man who was hit and killed on a cross-country bicycle ride in June.
According to WJRT-TV, retired Bay City Police officer and current private investigator and court officer Matt Jankowski was charged with one count of moving violation causing death for the death of Bob Blanchard.
Blanchard, an 83-year-old from Bradenton, had been cycling most of his adult life and logged hundreds of thousands of miles.
In June, he hit the 200,000-mile mark during the trek from Bradenton to Michigan.
Shortly after hitting that milestone, he was struck and killed near Bay City, a small city north of Saginaw. According to family members, Blanchard was leaving his son’s house en route for his daughter’s home.
Almost six months later, his family members are still grieving the loss.
“It’s not been a good year. I’m seriously thinking that I may need to get some professional help,” said Judi Windle, Blanchard’s girlfriend who lives in Parrish. “It was very tough."
According to Jankowski’s attorney, Duane Hadley, the former officer was looking down at an alert on his dashboard ahead of the collision with Blanchard.
However, Windle is doubtful. She’s also frustrated at the charge filed against Jankowski. According to Michigan law, the charge, a misdemeanor, carries a max of one year in prison.
“I had a feeling it might not be much, but a misdemeanor for someone’s life just doesn’t seem like justice,” Windle said.
Jankowski is due in court in January.
According to Hadley, his client is “tore up” and feels “horrible” about the crash but will demand a jury trial and present a full defense against the charge.
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