MIDLAND, Pa. --
A Pennsylvania firefighter, accused of passing cars with his vehicle's emergency lights flashing, has been charged in connection with a crash last summer that claimed the life of a motorcyclist.
Johnathan Hogue, 20, has been charged with homicide by vehicle, involuntary manslaughter and other offenses for the Aug. 9, 2009 wreck, according to the Pittsburgh Channel.
Authorities also said Hogue was not responding to an emergency when his vehicle hit the motorcyclist head-on. They said a passenger was playing with the emergency lights.
State police said Hogue, a volunteer firefighter, was driving up to 75 mph and passing cars with his emergency lights flashing when his private car hit a motorcycle head-on, killing the bike's driver, Bryan Loeffler, 23, of Canonsburg.
In Pennsylvania, blue lights are used to let other drivers on the road know that the firefighters are responding to a call, but they cannot be used to disregard common traffic laws.
Firefighters cannot speed or go through stop signs or red lights in their cars, authorities said.
