Police Launch Internal Probe After Fatal Dirt Bike Accident

CHARLOTTE, NC — Charlotte police have launched an internal investigation after a dirt bike rider ran off the road and was killed Sunday evening. The accident occurred during a police pursuit of a group of all-terrain vehicles riders sought for reckless driving in central Charlotte.

The incident began shortly before 8 p.m., after Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department received numerous 911 calls about a group of dirt bikes and ATVs driving recklessly in the city. A woman told officers that the group of riders surrounded her vehicle in the parking lot of Bojangles located at 300 West Boulevard, and struck it, causing damage.

“The victim was also physically assaulted at the scene,” CMPD said in a statement.

Following the hit-and-run report, a CMPD officer on a dual sport bike spotted the group of riders, and attempted to initiate a traffic stop.

According to investigators, a dirt bike driven by Michael Bernard Adams, 33, ran off the right side of the road, hitting a curb before striking a concrete pillar. Adams, who was not wearing a DOT approved helmet when he was thrown into the roadway during the accident, was taken to Atrium Health Carolinas Medical center, where he was pronounced dead.

The riders of the other dirt bikes and ATVs traveling with Adams left the scene at the time of the crash, police said.

“There is no evidence that any contact was made between the CMPD dual sport bike with any other bikes or ATV’s,” CMPD said. According to CMPD, the department has launched a internal affairs investigation to determine whether department policies and procedures were followed in the incident.

Detectives with the CMPD’s major crash investigation unit, as well as crime scene search, responded to the scene and determined speed was not a factor in the accident. The investigation into the crash remains ongoing and police ask that anyone with information or video evidence contact Crime Stoppers at 704-334-1600, or a Major Crash detective at 704-432-2169.