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13-year-old pleads to murder in 2024 death of bicyclist
A ghost bike honoring Scott Habermehl sits near Moon and Atkinson NE in Albuquerque.
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One of three boys charged with deliberately using a stolen car to strike and kill a man as he bicycled to work pleaded guilty Thursday to second-degree murder.
Johnathan Overbay, 13, faces a hearing April 30 when he will be sentenced to remain in custody until he is 21 years old, his attorney said Thursday.
Police identified Overbay as the driver of the car that struck Scott Habermehl, a 63-year-old engineer and father of two, as he pedaled to work at Sandia National Laboratories in May 2024.
Albuquerque police also arrested Messiah Hayes, 11, and William Garcia, 16, in the fatal crash. The cases against those boys are pending.
Overbay’s attorney, Michael Rosenfield, said in a phone interview Thursday that the plea agreement was in the best interest of his client.
“It’s unfortunate that the public will never know about his background,” Rosenfield said of Overbay. “It wasn’t a pretty background. Those of us who grew up in a typical middle-class family never know what these kids are exposed to.”
Judge Catherine Begaye accepted the plea agreement at a hearing Thursday in the 2nd Judicial District Children’s Court.
Albuquerque police were dispatched to the fatal crash at 4:40 a.m. May 29, 2024, where they found Habermehl near the intersection of Moon and Aspen NE.
Police said Habermehl rolled over the top of the car and fell to the ground.
In a cellphone video shared by police, the boys can be heard discussing whether to “bump” Habermehl and giggling in the moments before the car swerved into a bike lane. Police said the video was shared on social media.
