Bail was reduced Tuesday for a 39-year-old Hilo man accused of recklessly causing the death of one motorcyclist and the hospitalization of another with serious injuries in a Saturday afternoon head-on collision near the 46-mile marker of Daniel K. Inouye Highway.

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Bail was reduced Tuesday for a 39-year-old Hilo man accused of recklessly causing the death of one motorcyclist and the hospitalization of another with serious injuries in a Saturday afternoon head-on collision near the 46-mile marker of Daniel K. Inouye Highway.

Kona District Judge Andrew Kennedy reduced the bail for Jeremy Alexander Fleming from $400,000 to $300,000, noting that the bail includes amounts for both manslaughter and second-degree negligent homicide for the death of 55-year-old William “Billy” Joseph Simao of Hilo, but the state can only convict Fleming of one of the charges. Fleming is also charged with first-degree negligent injury for the injuries to 35-year-old Perry Keohuloa of Hilo, who was medivaced to The Queen’s Medical Center on Oahu due to the severity of his injuries.

Kennedy ordered Fleming to appear today for a preliminary hearing.

According to police, dispatch received a call about the collision at 3:07 p.m. Saturday. Officers plus fire and emergency medical personnel arrived at 3:26 p.m., with police noting roadway and weather conditions included light rain, water on the roadway, and thick fog that significantly reduced visibility in both directions.

Investigators determined that Fleming was driving a westbound blue 2023 Tesla sedan, attempting to pass several westbound vehicles by entering the eastbound lane, and collided head-on with Simao’s gray 2020 Harley-Davidson. The collision, police said, caused Simao’s motorcycle to collide with Keohuloa’s, which was also traveling eastbound in the same lane.

Simao died at the scene. The Tesla and both motorcycles came to rest down an embankment adjacent to the highway with Simao’s motorcycle wedged under the Tesla’s front bumper, according to court documents filed by police.

A fourth vehicle, a red 2014 Dodge Ram 1500 pickup truck, was also involved in the collision. The Dodge was traveling ahead of the vehicles Fleming was allegedly attempting to pass and sustained damage after being struck by debris from the collision. The truck’s occupants weren’t injured.

Investigation of the crash and clearing of the scene required the closure of DKI between Old Saddle Road and Highway 190 in West Hawaii for several hours.

Fleming was treated for minor injuries at North Hawaii Community Hospital and arrested after being released.

Documents state Fleming chose to speak to police after waiving his right to a lawyer, and told them the vehicles ahead of him were driving very slowly, between 35-40 mph according to his estimate, that he elected to pass three or four vehicles ahead of him and he didn’t see motorcycles or any other vehicles in the eastbound lane.

The Georgia-born Fleming has no prior felony convictions, according to documents, but was cited three times for speeding on the DKI in the past 26 months: 84 mph in a 60 mph zone on July 16, 2024; 80 mph in a 60 mph zone on May 19, 2026; and 75 mph in a 60 mph zone on June 25, 2026.

Simao and Keohuloa, who were both adult corrections officers, were riding with Ku Kane O Ka Makani Motorcycle Club in the yearly rally that brings motorcyclists statewide to the Big Island on Labor Day weekend.

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Police didn’t say whether either rider was wearing a helmet.

Manslaughter is a Class A felony that carries a maximum 20-year prison sentence upon conviction. Second-degree negligent homicide and first-degree negligent injury are Class C felonies with potential five-year prison terms. As earlier noted, Fleming can be convicted of either manslaughter or negligent homicide for Simao’s death, but not both.

A GoFundMe.com page titled Support for “Billy Simao’s Family After His Passing” raised $11,160 of a $12,000 goal as of mid-afternoon Tuesday.

Saturday was a horrific day for motorcyclists with at least two other crashes, one fatal, making the traffic fatality total for Hawaii Island 26 — eight more than the 16 fatalities on Big Island roadways at the same point last year.

The other fatality occurred early Saturday afternoon in Hilo on Kalanianaole Street near the Kamehameha Avenue intersection.

Officers responding to a 1:46 p.m. call determined that a 2015 Harley Davidson Road Glide motorcycle was westbound on Kalanianaole Street when the rider lost control and veered off the roadway, striking a utility pole. The rider, identified as 43-year-old Faavae Maualaivao of Kaneohe, Oahu, was ejected from the bike and died at the scene.

The investigation is classified as a coroner’s inquest and an autopsy has been ordered. Police think speed is a factor in the crash.

The third crash, which critically injured a 53-year-old man, occurred near the 14-mile marker of Highway 137, the Kapoho-Kalapana Road, in lower Puna.

Officers responding to a 1:48 p.m. call determined that the rider of a 2004 Honda Shadow motorcycle was traveling south when he lost control and the bike veered off the roadway. The rider, who wasn’t wearing a helmet, was ejected from the motorcycle and suffered critical injuries.

He was medivaced to The Queen’s Medical Center in Honolulu for further treatment.

Police think speed, alcohol and/or drugs were factors in the crash, and the rider — whom police did not identify — was arrested for DUI, reckless driving and driving without a license and insurance.

He was released without being charged pending further investigation because the severity of his injuries required hospitalization off-island and he couldn’t be brought to court within 48 hours of being charged.

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Email John Burnett at [email protected].