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Police knock federal report on fatal Michigan bike crash

odmp.org

Police agencies in Michigan are disputing a report by federal safety regulators who say better communication by 911 dispatchers might have prevented a crash that killed five bicyclists.

The Kalamazoo County sheriff and two police chiefs say the National Transportation Safety Board has done "a disservice" to everyone involved in the 2016 tragedy, including victims and survivors.

A group of bicyclists was struck by a pickup truck in Kalamazoo County's Cooper Township.

The driver is charged with second-degree murder and driving under the influence of drugs.

The NTSB says there were three calls to 911 about an erratic driver before the crash but the information wasn't fully shared among dispatchers.

Kalamazoo County Sheriff Richard Fuller III said Thursday that dispatchers at three departments handled the incident appropriately.