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Police cruiser strikes and kills a bicyclist pulling a trailer in Vermont

Red and blue lights on a police car go off during the day.
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State police are investigating the Nov. 11 crash in which a Shelburne police officer struck a cyclist.

SOUTH BURLINGTON (AP) — A bicyclist pulling a trailer in on Shelburne Road died after he was struck by a police cruiser, state police said.

The crash happened just before 3 a.m. Monday on U.S. Highway 7 in South Burlington. The officer, a sergeant with the Shelburne Police Department, was heading south and struck the southbound bicyclist. It was raining and dark, and the road was wet, state police said in a news release.

The bicyclist, Sean Hayes, 38, of Burlington, died at the scene, the state police said. The sergeant has been identified as Kyle Kapitanski, 41.

The state police crash reconstruction team and its criminal division are investigating. They are asking for any witnesses to contact them.

Kapitanski declined to comment when contacted by phone Tuesday. The Shelburne Police Department said Kapitanski is on administrative leave pending the outcome of the state police investigation, and extended condolences to Hayes' family and friends.

Kapitanski, who joined the department in 2022, had previously worked throughout Vermont in various police and sheriff's departments. He recently had served as police chief in the town of Richmond.

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Updated: November 12, 2024 at 2:56 PM EST
This article has been updated with a statement from Shelburne Police Department about the officer's administrative leave.
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