More plea deals in West Side Highway biker road rage case

WABC logo
Wednesday, March 25, 2015
More plea deals for bikers in road rage attack
Darla Miles has the latest on the plea bargains stemming from the violent attack on the West Side Highway.

LOWER MANHATTAN (WABC) -- There were more plea deals Wednesday for some of the bikers involved in a violent road rage attack that began on the West Side Highway.

The bikers who pled guilty chose not to go to trial.

Craig Wright, Kalik Douglas and James Kuehne all pleaded guilty to assault two and riot one for their role in the melee that injured Alexian Lien in September 2013.

In exchange for the guilty plea, they will spend two years in state prison and have three years post-release supervision.

Clint Caldwell also pled guilty to the same charges, but will only serve one year at Rikers Island.

The tension began when an SUV carrying a family on a Sunday drive crossed paths with a motorcycle rally, with at least one rider capturing events on a helmet-mounted camera and later posting video online.

Police say a motorcycle slowed in front of the Range Rover, which then bumped the bike. Motorcyclists dismounted and converged on the SUV. The driver, Lien, had said he feared for himself, his wife and their toddler. He hit the gas to get away, running over and seriously injuring motorcyclist Edwin Mieses Jr., of Lawrence, Mass.

The other bikers chased after Lien, dragged him from his car on a side street and beat him, some bashing him with their motorcycle helmets, authorities said.