A 59-year-old Newton motorcyclist was killed Thursday morning when a car merged into his lane on westbound Interstate 40 near Hildebran, struck his motorcycle once, and sent him flying from the bike. The driver now facing charges, 37-year-old Graham Anthony Patterson of Morganton, had been booked on a misdemeanor domestic criminal trespass charge.
The North Carolina Highway Patrol responded to the crash at approximately 6:46 a.m. Thursday on westbound I-40 near Exit 119. The victim, identified by the Lincoln Herald as Mark Randall Childers, was riding a 2026 Harley-Davidson when Patterson's 2014 Ford, driving in the left lane, merged into the right lane and hit the back left corner of Childers' motorcycle, causing him to lose control.
Motorcycle Struck Once
The car struck Childers's motorcycle once near Exit 119. Childers was pronounced dead at the scene.
WHKY reported that Patterson, who was uninjured, was driving a 2014 Ford passenger car at the time.
Charges Filed, Plus a Pending Case Involving His Estranged Wife
Crash Charges and a Prior Booking Patterson was charged with failure to maintain lane control, driving with no operator's license, and misdemeanor death by vehicle, the News Herald reports. Patterson was also booked September 29 on a misdemeanor domestic criminal trespass charge.
All of the charges remain allegations unless and until proven in court.
What North Carolina's Misdemeanor Death by Vehicle Law Requires
Under North Carolina General Statute § 20-141.4(a2), misdemeanor death by vehicle applies when someone unintentionally causes another person's death while violating a traffic law or local ordinance, as long as that violation is the proximate cause of the fatality, according to the Powers Law Firm. The law specifically excludes impaired driving, which is prosecuted separately as a felony. It's classified as a Class A1 misdemeanor, the most severe misdemeanor tier in the state, punishable by up to 150 days of active jail time depending on prior record level, as well as a mandatory 12-month driver's license revocation with no eligibility for a limited driving privilege, the firm notes in a separate breakdown of the statute.
Part of a Rising Statewide Death Toll
The crash adds to a grim statewide pattern. Traffic fatalities in North Carolina climbed 2.7% year-over-year to 1,732 deaths across 284,546 reported crashes in 2024, according to NCDOT data cited by the Deuterman Law Group. Non-impaired violations remain a major driver of those fatalities, with speeding alone contributing to 21.4% of all traffic deaths in the state that year.
Motorcyclists face especially steep odds on North Carolina highways. The state sees more than 3,700 motorcycle crashes annually, with nearly 80% of those collisions resulting in injury or death, according to state crash statistics compiled by personal injury firm Riddle & Brantley.
