Tragedy Widens in Fatality: McKenna's Owner Who Struck Cyclists is Terminally Ill

Nicholas Limer, the driver of an SUV that struck and killed a motorcyclist and  hospitalized another, is the owner of McKenna's on the Bay, where his manager revealed Sunday that's he's profoundly "remorseful." 

And, said MKenna's manager John Morris, who has known Limer for decades, his friend is already stricken with stage 4 pancreatic cancer and, at the time of the crash, was driving to his Belmont Shore home in crippling pain.

"It's beyond sad," Morris said in the late afternoon. "He left here because he was hurting so much. He can barely eat, much less drink. He drives the same way home every day, down Glendora .... He said he didn't even see them."

At about 8:45 p.m. Friday night, Limer made what Long Beach police called "an unsafe left turn" from westbound Second Street onto Glendora Avenue, and Taryn Hawk and Joseph Daroza, both of Huntington Beach and riding Harley Davidsons, drove into Limer's Toyota Sequoia. The light was green, the cyclists were in the #2 lane and by law they had the right-of-way. 

Hawk, 35, died at the scene with major head trauma, and Daroza, 30, was hospitalized in stable condition as of Saturday night, said a Long Beach Police Department news release. Limer, 68, who lives just a couple blocks from the crash site, was unharmed in the accident; he was questioned and may face criminal charges, police said Saturday.

The police news releasee did not detail any possible charges but said detectives will present the case to the District Attorney's Office for possible criminal charges." 

On Sunday, Morris said Limer had not been drinking and has lost his appetite in the later stages of his cancer, which he's had for more than two years. He said the reason Limer asked him to take over operation of the popular fine dining restaurant on Alamitos Bay was because Limer was too exhausted from rounds of chemotherapy.

Despite that, Limer has put on charity fundraisers and events in that time, most recently the free fireworks show over Alamitos Bay on July 3 .

Limer, an engineer who formerly worked in aerospace, "is a really good man, said Morris, adding: "he's deeply remorseful."

Police have asked anyone with information about the crash to call Collision Investigations Detail Detective Brian Watt at 562-570-7355.