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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
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| Motorist Charged With Killing Bicyclist He Thought Was a Thief | Motorist Charged With Killing Bicyclist He Thought Was a Thief |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| [What you need to know to start the day: Get New York Today in your inbox.] | [What you need to know to start the day: Get New York Today in your inbox.] |
| In a city filled with cars, breaking into one is a crime so common it often goes unnoticed. | In a city filled with cars, breaking into one is a crime so common it often goes unnoticed. |
| But on Labor Day, a motorist in Brooklyn spotted a man trying to break into his sport-utility vehicle and, instead of calling the police, chased him with the S.U.V. as the man fled on a bicycle, running him over and killing him. | But on Labor Day, a motorist in Brooklyn spotted a man trying to break into his sport-utility vehicle and, instead of calling the police, chased him with the S.U.V. as the man fled on a bicycle, running him over and killing him. |
| On Tuesday, the police charged the motorist, Korey Johnson, 41, of Brooklyn, with murder and manslaughter. Mr. Johnson was expected to face a judge on Tuesday afternoon. | On Tuesday, the police charged the motorist, Korey Johnson, 41, of Brooklyn, with murder and manslaughter. Mr. Johnson was expected to face a judge on Tuesday afternoon. |
| The fatal encounter started at around 6 a.m. on Monday, when Mr. Johnson confronted Donald Robert, 47, who was trying to force his way into Mr. Johnson’s 2003 Jeep Grand Cherokee near Ellery Street and Broadway in the Bushwick neighborhood, the police said. | The fatal encounter started at around 6 a.m. on Monday, when Mr. Johnson confronted Donald Robert, 47, who was trying to force his way into Mr. Johnson’s 2003 Jeep Grand Cherokee near Ellery Street and Broadway in the Bushwick neighborhood, the police said. |
| Their shouts turned physical, the police said, when Mr. Robert, mounted on a bicycle, slashed Mr. Johnson’s companion on her right arm with a screwdriver and pedaled away. | Their shouts turned physical, the police said, when Mr. Robert, mounted on a bicycle, slashed Mr. Johnson’s companion on her right arm with a screwdriver and pedaled away. |
| The police said an enraged Mr. Johnson climbed into his S.U.V., stepped on the gas pedal and slammed into Mr. Robert from behind. He died at the scene. | The police said an enraged Mr. Johnson climbed into his S.U.V., stepped on the gas pedal and slammed into Mr. Robert from behind. He died at the scene. |
| A dramatic video posted on Twitter shows a driver veering into incoming traffic and hitting parked cars before striking the fleeing man. | |
| The bicycle shattered into pieces, and the S.U.V. flipped onto its side. The street was littered with glass shards, twisted metal and pieces of cars, including broken headlights and front grills. | The bicycle shattered into pieces, and the S.U.V. flipped onto its side. The street was littered with glass shards, twisted metal and pieces of cars, including broken headlights and front grills. |
| Amy Rojas, 32, who lives in an apartment across the street, said she was awakened by the cacophony of the crash, then yelling. “It was really loud, like a bang. People sounded scared,” she said. | Amy Rojas, 32, who lives in an apartment across the street, said she was awakened by the cacophony of the crash, then yelling. “It was really loud, like a bang. People sounded scared,” she said. |
| Then she saw paramedics trying to revive a man beside the rolled S.U.V. “It just gave me chills,” she said. | Then she saw paramedics trying to revive a man beside the rolled S.U.V. “It just gave me chills,” she said. |
| Ms. Rojas, a lifelong resident of the neighborhood, said car break-ins are endemic in the area. Her car had been broken into seven times, the most recent time a year ago. | Ms. Rojas, a lifelong resident of the neighborhood, said car break-ins are endemic in the area. Her car had been broken into seven times, the most recent time a year ago. |
| Sam Chavis, who works at a Boost Mobile store in front of the crash scene, said he watched the police collect fragments of the bicycle and a single shoe that had been knocked under the damaged Jeep Cherokee. | Sam Chavis, who works at a Boost Mobile store in front of the crash scene, said he watched the police collect fragments of the bicycle and a single shoe that had been knocked under the damaged Jeep Cherokee. |
| “The bicycle pieces were all over the place,” he said. “They put the pieces in a brown bag.” | “The bicycle pieces were all over the place,” he said. “They put the pieces in a brown bag.” |
| Mr. Johnson had been arrested at least 19 times for low-level drug and vehicle offenses, according to court records. He spent six months in jail in 2010 for driving with a suspended license. | Mr. Johnson had been arrested at least 19 times for low-level drug and vehicle offenses, according to court records. He spent six months in jail in 2010 for driving with a suspended license. |
| Donald Ashby, 52, said he was walking out of Woodhull Medical and Mental Health Center when he saw Mr. Johnson, whom he knows, hit the man on the bicycle with his S.U.V. | Donald Ashby, 52, said he was walking out of Woodhull Medical and Mental Health Center when he saw Mr. Johnson, whom he knows, hit the man on the bicycle with his S.U.V. |
| “He was just slamming all the cars, blam, blam, blam,” Mr. Ashby said. “When he hit him, you heard the body pop. You heard the air. He was split up. It was bad.” | “He was just slamming all the cars, blam, blam, blam,” Mr. Ashby said. “When he hit him, you heard the body pop. You heard the air. He was split up. It was bad.” |
| He said Mr. Johnson often came to the neighborhood to visit a woman, and the two of them frequently walked together. | He said Mr. Johnson often came to the neighborhood to visit a woman, and the two of them frequently walked together. |
| Mr. Ashby said he does not know Mr. Johnson well, but could understand that Mr. Johnson was angry about his car being broken into. But, he added, the actions seemed out of proportion. | Mr. Ashby said he does not know Mr. Johnson well, but could understand that Mr. Johnson was angry about his car being broken into. But, he added, the actions seemed out of proportion. |
| “He snapped,” Mr. Ashby said. “He lost it.” | “He snapped,” Mr. Ashby said. “He lost it.” |
| Mr. Johnson’s neighbors and friends were at a loss to square the dedicated father they knew with the man the police said had taken someone’s life over a car break-in. He was a skilled mechanic, they said, who fixed his friends’ cars for free and worked more than one job to provide for his daughter, whose mother died about two years ago. | |
| Friends said Mr. Johnson, who attended Transit Tech High School, also had a special affection for his vehicles and the car tools he kept in them. | |
| “He loved his cars, they were his baby,” said Daniel Duncan, 30, a longtime friend who admired Mr. Johnson’s talent for turning fixer-uppers into the automotive versions of Cinderella. “He takes a $500 car and makes it a lady.” | |
| “He’s the coolest cat in the world,” Mr. Duncan added. “I don’t think he meant to kill him. It tears you up.” | |
| Alex Traub contributed reporting. Kitty Bennett contributed research. |