Man Blames Coffee Mug For Fatal Crash With Bicyclist: Police

BALL GROUND, GA — An arrest has been made in the Feb. 1 collision that killed a cyclist on Ball Ground Highway near Commerce Lane in Ball Ground.

Nathaniel Pool, 43, of Jasper, was struck and killed at 5:30 a.m. as he was riding his bike down Ball Ground Highway. The driver of the Jeep Renegade that struck Pool, Johnathan Welch, 35, of Ball Ground, remained at the scene and called 911.

Welch told investigators he looked down to make sure he had his mug of coffee and as he was looking up, he hit the cyclist.

Traffic investigators with the Cherokee Sheriff's Office Traffic Enforcement Unit charged Welch with homicide by vehicle in the second degree, due care (distracted driving) and safe distance.

Welch turned himself in on Feb. 14 and was released that same day on a $3,150 bond.