A Walmart truck driver charged with causing the weekend crash that severely injured actor and comedian Tracy Morgan and killed comedian James McNair had not slept in more than 24 hours, according to a criminal complaint revealed on Monday.
The Associated Press reported on Monday that Kevin Roper, 35, of Jonesboro, Georgia, would appear in court for the first time on Wednesday. He was charged with one count of death by auto and four counts of assault by auto in connection with the six-vehicle pileup on the New Jersey Turnpike on Saturday.
A copy of the complaint, posted online by CBS New York, says Roper was operating a vehicle "without having slept for a period in excess of 24 hours resulting in a motor vehicle accident".
Roper, accompanied by his lawyer, had turned himself in to New Jersey police. He was released on Saturday night after posting a $50,000 bond.
The crash killed McNair and critically injured three men, including Morgan. It was apparently caused when the tractor-trailer failed to slow for traffic and swerved, slamming into the limousine bus driving the men to New York from a show in Delaware, authorities said.
The collision set off a chain-reaction crash involving a second tractor-trailer, an SUV and two cars.
Morgan's vehicle overturned, killing McNair.
In a statement released on Saturday, Walmart president Bill Simon said the company "will take full responsibility" if authorities determine its truck caused the crash.
"We're praying for the family and friends of the passenger who lost his life in the terrible accident," the statement said.
Morgan's spokesman, Lewis Kay, said in a statement that the former Saturday Night Live cast member and 30 Rock star was in "critical but stable" condition on Monday. He had surgery on a broken leg on Sunday, Kay said, and is expected to stay in the hospital for several weeks.
Morgan sustained several injuries in the crash including a broken leg, a broken femur, a broken nose and broken ribs, Kay said in an earlier statement.
"His family is tremendously overwhelmed and appreciative of the outpouring of love and support from his fans," Kay said on Sunday.
Morgan's ex-wife, Sabina Morgan, told the New York Daily News McNair had been a mentor to the comedian, “one of the first that took Tracy under his wing”.
Morgan appeared on SNL from 1996 to 2003, and on the hit NBC sitcom 30 Rock from 2006 to its close in 2013, receiving a 2009 Emmy nomination for best supporting actor.
