John Ryan Joyce died nearly three months after police say a pickup struck him outside his home.
ROCKFORD, Mich. — Prosecutors have upgraded a December vehicle assault case to second-degree murder after a Rockford man died from medical complications months after police say he was hit by a pickup and beaten in a driveway.
Thomas Patrick Olman, 49, now faces the murder charge in the death of John Ryan Joyce, 49. The case changed after Joyce died March 4 and the Kent County Medical Examiner’s Office ruled his death a homicide, finding that blood clots and pulmonary emboli stemmed from the injuries he suffered Dec. 11.
Joyce’s death followed a long hospital stay that began after the collision near Gibraltar Drive and Glencarin Drive. Police said Joyce suffered a fractured pelvis, fractured ribs and spinal injuries after being struck by Olman’s truck. The medical examiner later determined that Joyce died of bilateral pulmonary emboli and deep vein thrombosis, which investigators described as complications tied to the crash injuries. That finding gave prosecutors the basis to seek a murder charge, replacing the earlier assault count that had been filed while Joyce was still alive. The charge does not mean Olman has been found guilty, and the case remains pending in court.
The criminal complaint grew out of a relationship dispute involving Joyce, Joyce’s estranged wife and Olman, who was dating her during the couple’s divorce. According to police records described in local reports, Joyce had gone to Olman’s home earlier that day after learning his estranged wife’s vehicle was there. Joyce told investigators she was supposed to turn over a credit card as part of the divorce settlement. He said he searched the unlocked vehicle for the card, did not find it and took the keys instead. Police said that choice set up the later confrontation at the Rockford home Joyce still co-owned with his estranged wife.
Olman told police he drove the woman to Joyce’s home so she could retrieve her keys. Joyce told detectives his estranged wife came to the house and demanded them. He said he told her she did not need the keys because Olman could drive her to work, then decided to take the keys outside and hand them to Olman directly. Police said Olman was parked nearby in his truck. Joyce walked toward him, heard the engine rev and saw the truck accelerate, according to the affidavit. Joyce told officers the vehicle came toward him so fast that he believed Olman was flooring it before impact.
Evidence collected at the scene became central to the homicide theory. Investigators said tire tracks in snow showed the pickup’s path through the road. They also noted damage to the passenger-side headlight and hood, a broken mailbox and audio from a doorbell camera that captured the impact. Police said dashcam footage from the truck showed Joyce in front of the vehicle as the truck accelerated and turned toward him. According to the affidavit, Joyce tried to jump toward the yard when he realized the truck was turning in his direction. The video and physical evidence, police said, contradicted Olman’s claim that he was trying to avoid Joyce.
The moments after impact added another layer to the case. Joyce told police he remembered being thrown into the air, spinning and landing in a driveway. Investigators said Olman then got out of the truck and continued the assault. Joyce said Olman punched him in the face and kicked him while saying, “Why are you coming after me?” Officers who arrived soon after found Joyce lying in the driveway. The affidavit said Joyce’s estranged wife was standing nearby and appeared to be watching rather than helping. Police also found Olman still at the scene, standing on the sidewalk. Public reports have not listed any charge against the woman.
Olman’s account differed from Joyce’s and from investigators’ reading of the evidence. He told detectives he accelerated out of his parking spot but was trying to leave because he believed Joyce was approaching him. Olman said Joyce jumped in front of the truck, according to court records cited in local coverage. He also said his girlfriend had warned him that Joyce was coming out of the house to meet him. Police said the dashcam footage, snow tracks and other evidence showed a different path. The affidavit said the truck accelerated quickly and veered toward Joyce as he tried to move away.
The upgraded charge places the case in a more serious stage of prosecution. Olman was arraigned after Joyce’s death, and a judge set his bond at $250,000. Prosecutors will have to connect the alleged driving and driveway assault to the medical cause of death, while also proving the mental state required for second-degree murder. The defense is likely to focus on Olman’s statement that he was trying to get away and did not intend to strike Joyce. Court records cited in reports did not show an immediate next hearing date, but the case is expected to continue in Kent County.
Joyce’s relatives have described him as a devoted father of two daughters who went by his middle name, Ryan. His sister, Kelli Gunn, said the family believes the video evidence is important because it recorded the truck’s movement before impact. “He was gunning it,” Gunn said. She also questioned why the dashcam was recording the encounter. Family members have said Joyce’s death left them waiting for answers through a criminal process that began as an assault case and became a homicide case only after the medical examiner’s finding.
Currently, Olman remains charged with second-degree murder as the case moves forward. The next phase will center on the evidence collected from the truck, the driveway, the doorbell camera and the medical examiner’s ruling that tied Joyce’s March 4 death to the Dec. 11 collision.
Author note: Last updated May 21, 2026.