UPDATE: Bicyclist Killed in Crash Identified as Kirkland Resident

UPDATE, Friday, 3:25 p.m.: Bail was set at $500,000 in King County District Court in Seattle Friday for 26-year-old Nathan Jeremie Godwin of Redmond, arrested for suspicion of vehicular homicide in the death of a bicyclist early Thursday morning in the Totem Lake area. The deadline for a charging decision is Dec. 12.

The Seattle Times reported earlier today that Godwin has a prior conviction on drug-related charges and has previously been accused of reckless endangerment and other traffic-related crimes.

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UPDATE, Friday, 9 a.m.: The bicyclist killed early Thursday morning in the Totem Lake area has been identified by the King County Medical Examiner's office as Bradley J. Nakatani of Kirkland, 36.

KING5 news reported that friends and co-workers will hold a candlelight vigil for Nakatani Friday from 4 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the intersection where he was killed, 132nd Avenue NE and 124th Street. They want to remember their friend and raise awareness about the dangers of drunk driving.

A group of bicyclists on Facebook is also planning to ride from the Overlake Transit Center in Redmond to the site of the vigil beginning at 3:30 p.m.

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Original story:

A 36-year-old man apparently from Bellevue was killed instantly in the darkness of early Thursday morning when a large SUV hit him and the bicycle he was riding in the Totem Lake area of Kirkland.

The driver of the SUV, a Ford Excursion, was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol, said Kirkland Police Lt. Mike Murray. He has been identified as a 27-year-old Redmond man, and was booked into the King County Jail in Seattle Thursday afternoon on suspicion of vehicular homicide.

Police had not released the victim’s name by early Thursday afternoon, but his father and sister showed up at the scene a few hours after the collision, during the investigation. Murray said the victim's driver's license listed a Bellevue address, but that he might have lived in an apartment complex near the scene.

The bicyclist had been westbound on busy Northeast 124th Street at about 2:50 a.m. and was turning south onto Slater Avenue Northeast, apparently heading home from work. Murray said the SUV was eastbound on 124th when it hit the bicyclist.

“He was probably killed instantly,” Murray said. “There was nothing aid (crews) could do, unfortunately.”

Murray said Kirkland Police have had contact with the SUV driver before.

“We know the suspect,” Murray said. “He’s familiar to us from past contacts."

Patch generally does not name suspects of crimes until they have been formally charged.

The driver was first taken to Evergreen Hospital, where a blood sample was taken for a blood alcohol test, and then to the Kirkland Police station at City Hall.

Murray said the victim was an experienced rider who wore reflective clothing and had a light on his bike. “I think he even had a light on his helmet,” Murray said.

Northeast 124th is a very busy arterial that provides access from the east and west to Interstate 405 at Totem Lake. The intersection where the accident occurred is east of 405 at a major intersection with Slater Avenue on the south and 132nd Avenue Northeast on the north, just west of the Kirkland/Redmond border.

Northeast 124th was jammed with traffic all morning after the accident, since police closed the intersection for several hours during their investigation.

The Kirkland Police are asking anyone who might have information regarding the accident to contact Sgt. Lisa Brouelette at 425-587-3493 or lbrouelett@kirklandwa.gov.