By
Ryan Gabrielson
Arizona Daily Wildcat
'Well-liked' and 'devoted' sophomore was usually safe when riding
A UA student was killed in a motorcycle accident yesterday morning when he collided with a tow truck at West First Street and North Cherry Avenue.
James Thomas Haley, 19, was riding his motorcycle westbound on First Street when he failed to yield at a stop sign and struck the front end of a tow truck from Gary's Towing, traveling northbound just before 1:50 a.m. Monday.
University of Arizona and Tucson Police Department officers responded to the scene, said Sgt. Mike Smith, UAPD public information officer.
There were no arrests or citations given, and it is not yet known if alcohol was related in the accident. Toxicology reports are still pending, said Sgt. Marco Borboa, TPD public information officer.
Haley, an aerospace engineering freshman from Prescott, was transported to the University Medical Center and was pronounced dead at 2:15 a.m. from injuries incurred during the collision.
He was not wearing a helmet.
"He was a thrill-seeker," said Tim Otten, Haley's roommate at the Phi Theta Delta fraternity house, 1745 E. Second St.
Haley, who graduated from Brophy College Preparatory in Phoenix, had been riding motorcycles for about a year, said Otten, a business and criminal justice sophomore.
Though Haley - known as "J.T." - wasn't wearing a helmet at the time of the accident, Otten said when Haley went riding off-campus he would always wear one and that he was safe.
"But usually when he was on campus he did not (wear a helmet)," Otten added.
Haley came to the UA last spring and rushed the Phi Theta Delta fraternity.
"He was well-liked and very devoted," said Otten.
As a member of the UA Naval Reserve Officer Training Core, Haley was a Midshipman and had just received a scholarship from the program this fall, said Commander Frank Randolf, who oversaw Haley's activities within the program.
Even though Haley was accepted to the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., he still wanted to attend the UA, Otten said.
Haley grew up in Prescott and attended the Sacred Heart Elementary School. He was raised Catholic and continued to be strong in his faith, Otten said.
Haley's family did not wish to comment.
He is survived by his parents, Thomas and Kathy, and his sister Gillian Haley, a UA liberal studies freshman.
