Driver charged in death of bicyclist at busy south Indy intersection

INDIANAPOLIS — An Indianapolis man has been charged with a felony in connection with the car-crash death of a bicyclist earlier this year at a busy intersection on the city’s south side.

Chase Turner, 22, was charged this week in Marion County court with causing death while driving with a controlled substance in the blood – a level 4 felony. Specifically, prosecutors allege Turner killed a bicyclist in February while driving to work with Delta-9 THC in his bloodstream.

Indianapolis Metro police crews were called just after 7 a.m. on Feb. 13 to the intersection of Raymond and Shelby streets for a car crash that happened near the I-65 South off-ramp. Upon arrival, officers found Dillan Lee Rogers injured in the street.

Rogers was reportedly riding through the intersection on a bike when the driver of a blue Ford F-350 pickup truck hit him.

The 32-year-old Rogers was pronounced dead by medics on scene. For more information on how the community remembered Rogers after his death, click here.

Officers said that the driver of the truck, later identified as Turner, had pulled into a nearby White Castle parking lot and parked after the crash. In an interview with detectives, Turner gave his account of what happened.

Turner said he was driving to work when the crash occurred. He said he was getting off of I-65 and stopped for a red light before looking left, right and left again. He said that when he began to accelerate, he felt a bump.

Court documents state that Turner then pulled into the White Castle parking lot and flagged down a nearby officer. He told officers that he never saw the victim.

Turner was taken by officers to Eskenazi Hospital for a blood draw, given that the crash was fatal. The Indiana State Department of Toxicology later found that Turner’s blood tested positive for Delta-9 THC, commonly referred to as weed or marijuana.

Officers reviewed IMPD traffic cameras that filmed the crash and determined that Rogers was headed eastbound in the north Raymond Street crosswalk when he was hit. Footage also showed that Rogers had the right of way when Turner reportedly hit him with the truck.

Given the evidence gathered, Turner was charged Thursday in Marion Superior Court with one level 4 felony. An arrest warrant has been issued and remains active as of 12:30 p.m. Friday.