A former Penn State football wide receiver is facing charges including homicide by vehicle while driving under the influence for a May ATV crash in Pennsylvania’s Northern Tier that claimed the life of his girlfriend.
Julian Fleming, 24, was arraigned Wednesday in Bradford County and posted $75,000 bond.
Fleming was driving a 2024 Yamaha ATV with 23-yard-old Alyssa D. Boyd as his passenger on Painter Lick Road in Columbia Township at around 8 p.m. on May 23 when he collided with a deer that jumped into the roadway, according to a criminal complaint filed Tuesday by state police at Towanda and a crash report. Police said Fleming was driving at an unsafe speed, estimated at 30 to 40 mph.
Neither was wearing safety equipment and both were thrown from the vehicle, police wrote. Boyd was pronounced dead at the scene, and Fleming was taken to a hospital to be treated for serious injuries.
Fleming admitted to police that he had been drinking, and he was found to have a blood alcohol content of .118, according to the complaint. The legal limit in Pennsylvania is .08.
He is charged with felony counts of homicide by vehicle while DUI, homicide by vehicle, aggravated assault by vehicle while DUI and aggravated assault by vehicle, along with a misdemeanor count of DUI and four summary driving offenses.
His attorney, David Bahuriak Jr., told multiple outlets on Wednesday that the crash was a “tragic accident” and that Fleming should not be facing the charges.
Fleming, of Columbia County, played his senior season with the Nittany Lions in 2024 after four years at Ohio State. Once a five-star prospect and the No. 1 prospect in Pennsylvania out of Catawissa’s Southern Columbia High School, he concluded an injury riddled college career with 1,139 receiving yards and eight touchdowns across 54 games.
