Nearly four years after Martin Michael Cruse was struck and killed while walking along Interstate 65 in Birmingham, police have arrested a man in connection with his death. Malique Corteze McKeithen has been charged with manslaughter in the case, which left Cruse's mother waiting years for answers about what happened to her 42-year-old son.
Cruse was killed on the morning of November 6, 2022, after his car ran out of gas on I-65 South near Green Springs, according to WBRC. The crash happened around 5:30 a.m. near Green Springs Avenue South, and Cruse was walking in a travel lane when he was struck, according to authorities cited by AL.com. He was pronounced dead at the scene at 5:59 a.m. that same morning.
Cruse had been wearing a bright yellow safety vest from his job and was on the phone with his mother, Marva Myricks, at the time he was walking along the right shoulder of the interstate, the same WBRC report states. Myricks has said her son had run out of gas and was making his way along the roadside when he was hit.
Witnesses Described a Car Speeding Through Traffic
Court records allege that McKeithen was driving in excess of posted speed limits and recklessly caused Cruse's death, according to the same WBRC account. Two witnesses told investigators that a car was weaving in and out of traffic at 90 to 100 mph moments before Cruse was struck, the station reported.
Birmingham police traffic homicide investigators continued to follow leads and pursue criminal charges over the nearly four years since the crash, according to AL.com. McKeithen was booked into the Jefferson County Jail and posted a $30,000 bond, after which he was released the same day, the outlet reported. The cause of his arrest was not immediately clear beyond the reckless-manslaughter charge and the allegations contained in court records.
A Mother's Years-Long Wait for Closure
Myricks had said she called Birmingham police almost every week since the crash, and was told the case was delayed by staffing shortages, an officer's leave, and missing video evidence, per the report from the station. The long gap between the crash and the arrest left her searching for closure for years before charges were finally filed.
Cruse worked as a ramp operations supervisor for Envoy Air and lived at home with his mother, according to his obituary posted by Walker Chapel Funeral Services. He was described in the obituary as a quiet and serious man who spent much of his time reading and researching topics that interested him. He was also remembered as an artist who drew, sketched and painted, and as an active member of the Moorish Science Temple of Alabama, where he worked with the temple's food and clothing drives.
Remembered for His Dedication to Karate
Cruse was also remembered for his long involvement in karate. His mother told WBRC that he loved the sport and held a fourth-degree black belt, while his obituary described him as a sixth-degree black belt, or Renshi, in Kyokushin karate and an instructor. The two accounts differ on the exact rank, but both describe Cruse as deeply committed to the discipline.
The case remains part of a broader pattern of roadway deaths across Alabama, though statewide data has shown some improvement in recent years. The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency has reported 26 fewer roadway fatalities in 2023 compared with 2022, the year Cruse was killed.
