Motorcyclist charged with death of his rider

The operator of a motorcycle whose passenger was ejected from the rear seat and thrown over the railing of a highway bridge into the Schuylkill has been charged with vehicular homicide in her death, officials said yesterday.

Julian Tyrone Mansfield, 21, was speeding on a stolen motorcycle when he struck the rear of a car while trying to pass it on the right side on the Dannehower Bridge on Route 202 in Norristown on the night of June 23, police and prosecutors said. Ryan Bonita Banjoman, 19, of Norristown, was thrown off the bike and over the side of the bridge, suffering fatal injuries, officials said. Her body was recovered from the river hours later.

Mansfield suffered serious injuries but survived. Montgomery County District Attorney Risa Vetri Ferman said Mansfield was charged with vehicular homicide, driving with a suspended license, receiving stolen property, and other offenses. - Inquirer staff