Update: 50-year old cyclist killed by hit-and-run driver in South L.A.

As reported here last night, a cyclist was killed in a hit-and-run collision in an unincorporated area near Compton.

The bike rider, identified as 50-year old Enrique Lemus Bautista, was riding north on Avalon Blvd when he was hit by a dark colored car travelling west on Redondo Beach Blvd shortly after 9 pm Tuesday. The car, described as a black BMW, never stopped.

According to the Daily Breeze, witness reports conflicted, preventing CHP investigators from determining who had the right-of-way. It was also unknown if the driver was speeding.

No other information is available at this time.

As far as I’m concerned, though, anyone who leaves another human being to die in the street should be charged with murder, regardless of who is at fault.

This is the 50th confirmed traffic-related cycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the 16th in L.A. County. It’s also the 10th fatal hit-and-run involving a cyclist, and the 4th in the County of Los Angeles.

Thanks to Rex Reese for the KCBS-2 link.

6 comments

  1. Opus the Poet says:

    I’m getting tired of reading these things, how about first hit-and-run is permanent loss of driver’s license unless you can prove there was no way you could know you hit something, like when a 40 ton semi knocks down a building with the trailer and it doesn’t even jostle the driver. I might allow a pass on something like that. Anyway second hit-and-run would be assault with a deadly weapon plus illegal possesion of a deadly weapon (because you would be driving a WMD without a license), so stack those 2 sentences consecutively.

    If that doesn’t reduce the carnage then start summarily executing random drivers because they “might have done something illegal”. Scratch that, I’m just in a bad mood after reading comments about Toronto’s bike lanes…

  2. Abel Martinez says:

    El pobre senor no tuvo culpa de nada, el chofer del carro con solo haberse ido de la escena es un asesino. Pero como el senor es hispano y el chofer es alguien importante no le dan la importancia debida.

    • bikinginla says:

      According to Google Translate, the above comment reads:

      The poor man was not guilty of anything, the driver of the car with just having left the scene is a murderer. But Mr. is Hispanic and the driver is someone important not to give due weight.

    • bikinginla says:

      Let’s hope you’re wrong. The death of any man deserves a full and fair investigation; who the victim or driver is should have no bearing on the charges.

      The race or origin of the victim, or whether he was here legally or not, does not matter in the slightest. It’s up to all of us to make sure it doesn’t.

  3. Gisselle says:

    Enrique lemus he is my uncle we found the murder

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