Fairfax City police charged a garbage truck driver in the Sept. 9 crash that killed a 13-year-old student riding an e-bike on Pickett Road.

Lawrence Onley, 46, of Fort Washington, Maryland, faces charges of careless driving and infliction of injury or death on a vulnerable road user under Virginia Code § 46.2-816.1, according to Patch, citing Fairfax City police. Onley voluntarily turned himself in and was taken to the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center, where he was issued a $1,500 secured bond.

The charges are allegations.

Onley is presumed innocent unless proven guilty. He has a pending court date in Fairfax City General District Court, though no specific date has been announced.

What investigators found

The crash happened shortly after 2:30 p.m. on Sept. 9 in the 3900 block of Pickett Road, near the drive aisle between Fair City Mall and Turnpike Shopping Center. Fairfax City police and Fairfax County Fire and Rescue were dispatched to the scene at 2:32 p.m., FFXnow reported.

Investigators determined Onley's garbage truck was exiting a shopping center onto Pickett Road. He stopped at the exit and was looking left as the student, riding a pedal-assist e-bike on the sidewalk, entered the crosswalk. The truck pulled forward and struck the student, who was pronounced dead at the scene.

Police initially investigated the crash as a possible hit-and-run. Information developed during the investigation indicated Onley did not know the truck had struck the student. Prosecutors at the Fairfax County Commonwealth's Attorney's Office and the City of Fairfax reviewed the case before charges were filed.

Virginia law prohibits law enforcement from identifying juvenile victims who have died. No statement from Onley or his attorney has been published.

Connection to South Lakes safety push

The Sept. 9 crash was one of three incidents that day involving Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) students and vehicles. FCPS Superintendent Michelle Reid said in a Sept. 9 letter to families that three students were involved in separate crashes with vehicles while riding bicycles or scooters, as WUSA9 reported.

Those crashes came just over a week after a 16-year-old student was struck while walking to South Lakes High School in Reston on Aug. 31. That student suffered minor injuries. The driver was charged with failure to stop before entering a highway, according to Northern Virginia Magazine.

The string of incidents intensified pressure on Fairfax County leaders to reverse a spring 2026 budget decision that cut $1.89 million from the crossing guard program and eliminated guards at 10 high schools, including South Lakes.

On Sept. 15, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to restore crossing guards at those 10 schools, approving $707,908 in recurring funding for 11 police positions, according to Patch. Hunter Mill District School Board Member Melanie Meren, who represents South Lakes, told supervisors at that Sept. 15 hearing, "Carryover money must fund high school crossing guards."

The board also approved a joint task force with the School Board on pedestrian and traffic safety around schools. That group is expected to deliver recommendations in time for fiscal year 2028 budget discussions.