Re-enactment could offer clues in hit-and-run

No skid marks led up to the crash that killed a bicyclist on Christmas night on Bluffton Parkway, indicating the driver of the truck that hit him may not have slowed down, police say.

If efforts Tuesday to re-create the hit-and-run are successful, they could give police more information about the accident in which a 37-year-old Bluffton resident was killed while riding his bike home from a party.

Ryan Cudlip, 29, a Savannah firefighter and former Hilton Head Island Middle School teacher, is charged with leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death, and involuntary manslaughter.

The Bluffton resident is accused of hitting Rosember Lopez-Martinez, 37, of the Shady Glen Mobile Home Park from behind with his 2006 Chevrolet Silverado around 8 p.m. and leaving the scene.

On Tuesday, the S.C. Highway Patrol's Multi-disciplinary Accident Investigation Team examined the eastbound lane of Bluffton Parkway between Buck Island Road and Simmonsville Road where the accident took place. Investigators measured marks made by police on the scene the night of the accident to help calculate speeds, distances and angles. That information couldbe used to create an animated version of the wreck for a Beaufort County jury.

Lack of evidence at the scene or changes to the road surface since the crash could hinder measurements and make a re-enactment impossible. Police won't know if their investigation will provide enough data until a full report is written by the Highway Patrol in two weeks. Bluffton investigators also are waiting for a State Law Enforcement Division report on evidence taken from Cudlip's pickup.

"Our investigation has created a strong case," Bluffton Police Lt. Bryan Norberg said, "and we're hopeful that (the

investigation team) will be able to get us this information. But right now, we're just dotting our 'i's' and crossing our 't's.'

"The data (the investigative team) can provide gives us a much clearer picture of what exactly happened and how everything occurred that night," Norberg said.

Police say they believe both Cudlip and Lopez-Martinez had been drinking the night of the wreck. Police still are invest-

igating Cudlip's whereabouts before the accident, police say.

Cudlip could face up to 30 years in prison and fines between $10,000 and $20,000. He was released on $100,000 bond Dec. 31.

His attorney, Sam Bauer, and the solicitor's office could not be reached for comment Tuesday afternoon.

An investigative team report was created in the May hit-and-run death of Josh George, a 17-year-old Bluffton High School senior. His vehicle was struck at the intersection of Bluffton Parkway and Buck Island Road as the student returned home from an after-prom party.

Juan Rodriguez, 21, is charged with felony DUI resulting in death. He is being held in the Beaufort County jail.