BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) —
Tomice Lee Fryman Jr., 51, has been charged with second-degree murder and multiple other offenses following a gruesome crash over the weekend that left body parts scattered along Westside Parkway in Bakersfield.
Fryman was arraigned Tuesday on charges that include vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence, hit-and-run causing death, and driving with a suspended license due to a prior DUI, according to court documents. A deputy public defender entered not guilty pleas on his behalf, and Judge Chad Louie ordered him held without bail. Fryman is scheduled to return to court on May 14.
Police were first called to the crash scene near the Mohawk Street off-ramp around 6:30 a.m. Saturday. Later that day, they found Fryman’s Hyundai sedan parked in the 7300 block of Stockdale Highway. He turned himself in and was arrested around 6 p.m. the same day.
The crash prompted a lengthy closure of eastbound lanes between Coffee Road and Truxtun Avenue, while investigators processed the scene.
Fryman’s record reveals a lengthy criminal history, including two DUI convictions that caused injury and multiple prison sentences. He was also involved in a notorious 2019 gang-related party that ended in a drive-by shooting. During that incident, attendees, including Jonathan Rae Knight—later convicted of murdering 5-year-old Kason Guyton—fired back at the shooters, hitting several homes and vehicles.