A Southgate man, Gerelle Rhan, will need an auto accident lawyer after prosecutors charged him with murder on Wednesday, May 27. The charge came after the suspect’s involvement in a car crash at Westland, Michigan, that killed a woman identified as Tina Ward, 48.
Westland police officers and officers from Garden City responded to distress calls from the crash area at approximately 7:53 p.m. on Wednesday, May 20. They rushed to the location, which was in the area of Cherry Hill Road and Merriman Road.
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On getting there, the officers found two cars damaged after the crash. The cars were resting in the southeastern corner of the intersection of Cherry Hill and Merriman Roads. The lifeless body of the victim, Ms. Ward, lay inside her vehicle. The officers transported the body from the crash scene.
The driver of the other vehicle, Rhan, sustained non-life threatening injuries. Officers took him to a hospital for treatment.
After investigations into the crash, the police determined that Rhan was traveling south on Merriman Road. He was driving aggressively and at an unsafe speed. At the same time, the deceased was moving east on Cherry Hill.
Rhan disregarded the red light and crashed into Ward’s car as she crossed the intersection. With their investigations complete, the police charged the suspect with Reckless Driving Leading to Death and Second Degree Murder.
Prosecutors arraigned Rhan on Wednesday afternoon, at a hospital in the locality. He will remain in police custody after the arraignment and be remanded to the Wayne County Jail after his release.
Rhan will need an auto accident attorney when legal proceedings on his case begin with a Probable Cause Conference on Thursday, June 4. There will also be a Preliminary Examination on June 11. The venue for both proceedings is Westland’s 18th District Court.
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