On September 5, 2006, driving a promotional 2006 Dodge Ram on Florida Route A1A, his driving license having been revoked in a previous incident in North Carolina,[2] Lane crossed a double yellow line to pass two cars, striking head-on the 1983 Yamaha motorcycle ridden by 56-year-old Gerald Morelock, a park ranger at Sebastian Inlet State Park, in the oncoming lane.
[8] A judge had earlier approved a plea deal where prosecutors dropped the felony DUI and manslaughter charges.
Previously, in June 2006, Lane had also been arrested by the North Carolina Highway Patrol and charged with drunk driving.
After refusing to take a breathalyzer test at the scene and leaving prosecutors without evidence presentable in court, Lane was found not guilty.
[2] Because his license had, however, been revoked in North Carolina, he had lost his right to drive in Florida at the time of the fatal crash.