Newark police have made an arrest in a fatal crash that took the life of a freshman at the University of Delaware.
Officials said on August 29, 2024, Newark Police obtained an arrest warrant for the operator of the motorcycle in this incident.
The motorcycle operator has been identified as Brian Briddle, 27, of Newark.
Briddle was taken into custody at his residence by Newark Police without incident. He was transported to Newark Police headquarters where he was charged with
- Murder Second Degree
- Possession of a Deadly Weapon During the Commission of a Felony
- Disregarding a Police Officer’s Signal
- Driving a Special Vehicle Without a Special License
- Operation of an Unregistered Motor Vehicle
- Failure to Stop at a Red Light (3 counts)
Briddle appeared before Justice of the Peace Court #2 by video and was ordered to be held in default of $362,005 cash bail. Briddle was turned over to the custody of the Howard R. Young Correctional Institution in Wilmington.
On Tuesday evening, at about 11:53, a University of Delaware police officer attempted to stop a motorcycle for the commission of a traffic offense. The attempted stop occurred on East Main Street just west of South Chapel Street.
Officials said the motorcycle disregarded the police officer’s emergency lights and fled at a high rate of speed westbound on East Main Street. The University of Delaware police officer did not engage in a pursuit with the motorcycle and extinguished his emergency lights when the motorcycle fled at a high rate of speed.
The motorcycle continued westbound on East Main Street at a high rate of speed and struck Noelia Gomez, 18, of Clark, New Jersey while she was in a pedestrian in a crosswalk on West Main Street, just west of North College Avenue. This crash occurred within one minute of the attempt to stop the motorcycle. The motorcyclist came off of the motorcycle as a result of the crash. The motorcycle continued onto the sidewalk on the north side of West Main Street and struck four pedestrians on the sidewalk, along with a light pole.
Bystanders attempted lifesaving measures on Noelia in the crosswalk, however they were unsuccessful. She pronounced dead at the scene.
Three of the pedestrians on the sidewalk suffered minor injuries for which they refused transportation to a hospital. One of the sidewalk pedestrians suffered injuries not believed to be life-threatening and was transported to an area hospital for treatment.
The motorcycle rider also suffered injuries not believed to be life-threatening and was transported to an area hospital for treatment.
Officials did not update the status of the motorcycle rider or release their name. Officials said on Wednesday that he rider has not been charged with any offenses at this time while the case remains under investigation.