Trial set for former cop in fatal 2015 crash

KEALAKEKUA — Trial has been set for early 2017 for a former Hawaii Police Department officer alleged to have fatally struck a cyclist in March 2015.

Pahoa resident Jody Buddemeyer, 32, pleaded not guilty Wednesday to charges of first-degree negligent homicide, tampering with physical evidence and making a false report to law enforcement in connection with the fatal March 1, 2015, crash that killed Jeffrey Surnow, a 69-year-old visitor from Michigan.

Third Circuit Court Judge Melvin Fujino set a Jan. 24, 2017, jury trial date for the former South Kohala patrolman, who was indicted on the charges by a Kona grand jury earlier this month. He remains free on $10,000 bail.

Police say Buddemeyer was operating eastbound a subsidized patrol car and was on-duty when his vehicle struck and killed Surnow, of West Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, as he rode his bicycle eastbound up Waikoloa Road morning. The collision, which Buddemeyer reported at 6:25 a.m., occurred near mile marker 11.

First responders with the Hawaii Fire Department initially reported the incident as a hit-and-run after Surnow was found lying face down near a “severely damaged” bicycle on the road’s shoulder. They noted he had died prior to their arrival.

Buddemeyer was subsequently arrested on suspicion of negligent homicide and released pending further investigation.

Buddemeyer was placed on administrative leave pending investigation. A police misconduct report presented to the Hawaii County Police Commission in February, which does not include names because of state law, said an officer was terminated in 2015 for tampering with the scene after being involved in a traffic fatality. Buddemeyer is no longer on the department’s sworn personnel list.

Surnow was the owner of Birmingham, Michigan-based real estate firm Surnow Co. and founder of the annual Birmingham Bike Festival.