Durham man pleads guilty to hitting, killing cyclist

Russell Grant Rutledge, 33, pleaded guilty to misdemeanor death by motor vehicle in the May 10 crash that killed Eugene Howard Rotberg.

Rotberg, 66, of Raleigh, was riding on N.C. Highway 98 near Cheek Road when he was struck by Rutledge's 2016 Chevrolet pickup, authorities said. The retired Wake County school teacher was thrown from his bike and landed on the shoulder of the road.

Rutledge, who also will serve a year on probation, apologized to Rotberg’s family in court.