Alcohol, speed considered factors in fatal motorcycle crash near Atlantic

Alcohol and speed are considered to be factors in a fatal motorcycle accident that killed an Omaha man early Saturday morning.

Aaron Newton, 44, of Omaha was driving a Harley Davidson with a passenger, Brittney Hill, 22, of Atlantic, down Marne Road at about 2 a.m. Saturday, according to an Iowa State Patrol crash report.

For unknown reasons, Newton exited the road and drove into the ditch east of Highway 173, between Marne and Atlantic, a town of about 6,500 approximately 80 miles west of Des Moines. Both occupants were thrown from the vehicle as the bike came to rest on its side.

Newton was pronounced dead at the scene and transported to the state medical examiner's office while Hill was flown to MercyOne's Des Moines Medical Center for injuries she sustained in the crash.

Neither was wearing a helmet.