IONIA, Mich. — An Ionia woman charged with killing two bicyclists during a Make-a-Wish bicycle tour in July will be heading to trial.
Mandy Benn, 42, is facing 15 charges including two counts of second-degree murder in the deaths of Edward Erikson, 48, of Ann Arbor, and Michael Salhaney, 57, of Bloomfield Hills.
During her preliminary hearing Thursday, the district judge heard testimony from witnesses, including two bicyclists who survived the crash.
The Ionia County Sheriff's Office says the incident happened around 11:15 a.m. on Stage Road in Ronald Township on July 30.
Body-cam video shows Michigan State Police responding to the scene following the deadly crash and speaking with Benn.
She can be heard telling one of the troopers that she was driving one of the vehicles involved that was now in a ditch, but she was driving straight.
"All of a sudden a bicyclist came out in front of me," she said.
One of the five bicyclists had a mounted camera where Benn's SUV can be seen driving northbound on the two-lane road seconds before hitting the bicyclists riding southbound.
Timothy Kolanowski was the fourth bicyclist riding with the 'Wish-a-Mile' tour, a three-day endurance ride that covered most of the state of Michigan.
"I went to reach for my face and my hand came back with blood all over it," he says. "We've been hit by this car and I realized then that we need to call 911. There are injuries. The other guys definitely got hit."
A homeowner who lives on Stage Road was emotional describing the tragic, chaotic scene.
"My window faces the road and I saw a body flying through the air. Very high," said Shoni Mayle.
An Ionia County Sherriff's detective testified Benn seemed confused, disoriented and had no comprehension of what was going on around her.
"She looked right at me, and she says, 'wow, officer that almost looks real.' I was really taken aback by that. It was like she was on a different planet," said Det. Sergeant Phillip Hesche.
The prosecutor presented audio recordings made by Benn seconds before the crash.
"I seriously just want to move to a dark corner and kill myself," she says in one of the recordings. "I'm not exaggerating. I want to die because it doesn't seem to matter what I do or try."
The prosecutor says Benn wasn't driving at an excessive speed, but she was under the influence of a cocktail of drugs including Benzodiazepine.
This also wasn't her first time. She was convicted of driving under the influence of drugs in 2017.
The charges against Mandy Marie Benn are the following:
- Two counts of Homicide Murder Second Degree
- Two counts Operating Under The Influence Causing Death
- Two counts Reckless Driving Causing Death
- Two counts Operating Under The Influence Causing Serious Injury
- Two counts Reckless Driving Causing Serious Impairment Of A Body Function
- Three counts of Controlled Substance - Possession/Analogues
- One count of Operating While Intoxicated 2nd Offense
- One count of Driving Reckless
Benn's arraignment will take place at the end of the month.
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