Husband of crash victim indicted on murder charge

A Hartselle man has been indicted on a murder charge following a July 23, 2010, motorcycle crash on U.S. 31 that killed his wife.

Richard Alan Stickles

Richard Alan Stickles, 52, of 1401 Elizabeth Drive was indicted during the February session of the Morgan County Grand Jury. He was arrested Tuesday by Hartselle and Decatur police officers at his workplace, Ropak Manufacturing, in Decatur.

Lt. Justin Barley, investigator for the Hartselle Police, said they presented the evidence to the grand jury following a traffic homicide investigation.

“We determined that speed and alcohol were factors in the crash,” Barley said. “We determined that the suspect was traveling at a high rate of speed and was under the influence of alcohol. We presented the findings of our investigation to the grand jury and they returned with an indictment.”

The suspect’s wife, 49-year-old Gayla Ileen Stickles, was a passenger on a motorcycle that Richard Stickles was driving. According to a July 2010 Hartselle Enquirer story, Gayla Stickles was thrown from the bike when it collided with an SUV on U.S. 31 southbound near Lowe’s at 9:15 p.m. July 23, 2010.

She was later pronounced dead on the scene while the suspect was airlifted to Huntsville Hospital.