Joshua Kapfhamer, charged in crash that killed motorcyclist on Miller Park Way, due in court

WEST ALLIS -- A West Allis man accused of killing a motorcyclist will be in court Monday, November 14th for his preliminary hearing.

The victim in this case is 47-year-old James Pulkkilla. He died on Wednesday, November 11th after the crash November 2nd near Miller Park Way and Lincoln in Milwaukee.

Officials say Pulkkilla was riding his motorcycle southbound on Miller Park Way near Lincoln Ave. that Monday evening. Officials say a vehicle driven by 31-year-old Joshua Kapfhamer of West Allis was headed northbound -- and apparently turned left in front of the motorcycle. The vehicles collided -- and Pulkkilla was thrown from his motorcycle and seriously injured.

Kapfhamer was arrested for OWI after failing field sobriety tests. He is now charged in this case with reckless driving - causing great bodily harm. But officials indicate those charges may be amended in light of Pulkkilla's death.

A criminal complaint charging Kapfhamer with reckless driving indicates when officers arrived on the scene of this crash, a nurse was tending to Pulkkilla -- who was not wearing a helmet.

That nurse had witnessed the crash.

The nurse said the motorcycle had been traveling southbound on Miller Park Way while the vehicle was traveling north. The vehicle turned westbound onto Lincoln Avenue -- and that's when the motorcycle was hit. The nurse indicated both vehicles had green lights at the time of this crash.

Kapfhamer and his passenger both indicated they believed their traffic signal was yellow prior to the crash, according to the complaint.

The complaint indicates Kapfhamer admitted to smoking marijuana prior to the crash -- and he performed poorly on field sobriety tests. He was tested at the hospital by a trained drug recognition expert as well.

It was determined that Kapfhamer's vehicle failed to yield the right of way to the motorcycle, resulting in the collision.

The criminal complaint makes reference to two prior OWI convictions for Kapfhamer -- one in 2004 in Oklahoma, and more recently in 2014 in Milwaukee.