Michael Fournier v. Timothy Mellon: A Plainfield man who went out for a motorcycle ride on an unusually warm December day and then crashed into a backhoe that turned in front of him has collected $1.3 million in a settlement.

Michael Fournier took his Harley-Davidson for a ride with two friends on Dec. 3, 2009, according to his lawyer, Kelly Reardon, of The Reardon Law Firm in New London.