Beaufort native killed in collision between truck, bike on James Island (Update: Indictment)

TheDigitel

(Update 2 at the bottom.)

Beaufort native Matthew Denton, 40, died Friday night after colliding with a pickup truck while on a bike on James Island's Riverland Drive near Charleston near 10:30 p.m

Very few details are known about the circumstances but Jeffery Lewis Thomas, 46, of Mount Pleasant has been charged in the incident. Police say Thomas, a reserve SC Department of Natural Resources Deputy Law Enforcement Officer, was involved in the accident and left the scene, and returned later.

541 Matthew Denton

Multiple reports abound, but the better is at The Post and Courier.

Denton is listed as the owner of a cable selling company and is the son of local lawyer Dan Denton.

Update September 22: More than a month after Denton's death after the bike he was on was struck by the Ford Explorer that Thomas drove, the charge of leaving the scene of an accident involving death has been dropped after a magistrate said there wasn't enough probable cause to support his arrest.

It's a charge that's left Denton's family frustrated and they've told The Post and Courier that they're frustrated over the handling of the case.

Read the paper's update here.

Update 2, December 13: Jeffery Thomas has been indicted with a charge of leaving the scene of an accident with death. 

Live 5 News offers a brief and The Post and Courier offers a longer report (subscription).

Filed in