A California man initially accused of vehicular manslaughter in connection with a crash that killed a bicyclist was charged with murder, in part because he had boasted about speeding on Twitter, reports the San Francisco Chronicle. Cody Hall, 18, of Pleasanton, is being held without bail in the death of Diana Hersevoort, 58.
An analysis of Hall’s driving record, along with Twitter posts in which he talked about how fast he liked to drive, factored into upgrading the case to murder, authorities said. Prosecutors have sought murder convictions in a number of roadway deaths, often where a motorist is intoxicated and has convictions for drunken driving. To prove second-degree murder, the government must show “implied malice,” that a driver engaged in an intentional, unlawful act done with conscious disregard for the risk to human life.