Breaking news: Cyclist attacked in Beverly Hills road rage assault; rider not seriously injured

More bad news from the Biking Black Hole.

News is just breaking that a bike rider was deliberately attacked with a motor vehicle after the rider hit the driver in a road rage dispute.

According to the Beverly Hills Police, the incident occurred nearly three weeks ago, around 6 pm on Wednesday, April 3rd.

Evidently, they don’t feel an urgent need to keep the public informed of violent crime on their streets. Let alone for the prompt release of information that might lead to the arrest of a dangerous suspect.

The victim, who has not been publicly identified, reportedly punched the driver of a white, possibly 2008 model year BMW 328i in the face. The motorist threatened to kill the rider, and followed him into an alley in the 9000 block of Wilshire Blvd, between Wetherly and Almont Drives; a Google satellite view shows alleys on both sides of the street behind the buildings facing Wilshire.

The driver then intentionally rammed the cyclist with his car, pinning him against a metal trash bin. Fortunately, the rider was not seriously injured; the fact that the trash bin was on rollers may have lessened the force of the impact.

The assault was captured on security footage; the attacker can clearly be seen reversing course in the alley and striking the victim, who clings to the mirror of the car as it backs away. Once he’s thrown off, he walks back to collect his bike.

There’s no word from the police on what caused the dispute.

Yes, the rider broke the law in striking the driver, regardless of what led up to it. It’s possible that he could face criminal or civil charges for assaulting the driver unless it can be shown that he hit him in self-defense; however, that requires that the action is necessary to halt a current or imminent physical attack.

The far more serious crime, though, is the motorist using his vehicle in a deliberate attempt to injure or kill the rider after the initial incident had concluded. It should be no different under the law than someone who gets into a fight in a bar, then goes out to the parking lot and shoots the person he’d argued with.

This is a clear case of assault with a deadly weapon. Any claim the driver may have had to self-defense ended the moment the cyclist initially rode away.

The suspect is described as a Middle Eastern or White male in his mid-30s, with dark hair and eyes, and a thin build; the Beverly Hills Courier has a somewhat sketchy sketch of the suspect. The car suffered possible minor front-end damage, although it may have been repaired by now.

Hopefully, the BHPD can overcome the delay in releasing this information and bring a violent criminal to justice.

And take this for fair warning.

As tempting as it may be sometimes to get even with the jackass that just ran you off the road, it’s never a good idea. There are some crazyass, and potentially very violent, people out there.

And it doesn’t take much to set them off.

8 comments

  1. Chris says:

    Nice to know lawdog is taking this one seriously! LOL You kidding me?! Three weeks ago? That crazy man could be out of the country by now or could be lining up his next victim. I guess its bedlam in BH that this attempted murder just didn’t take precedent over all the crazy shit that happens in BH. WEAK! Find this a-hole today for our children’s safety if nothing else.

  2. Kirth says:

    The Bev Hills PD advisory stated:
    “driver of the vehicle threatened to kill the victim and then [driver] followed him [cyclist] into an alley”

    BUT the video clearly shows the motorist AHEAD of the cyclist, motorist U-turns, and then head-on rams the cyclist.

    The PD account doesn’t jive with the video. Could the cyclist have been following the motorist, instead?

    • bikinginla says:

      It’s possible. However, it’s more likely that he driver simply passed the cyclist, then turned around to hit him.

    • Allan says:

      Sure would be nice to get this cleared up. Get a little more details on how this went down and where exactly. Doesn’t make it right for someone to run someone down, but it would make things abit clearer.

      I’m rather amazed that is even made it to the local news programs tonight. I’m pretty sure this was covered by all three networks. Ch 2 and 7 for sure.

      • bikinginla says:

        Actually, it appears to have been covered by everyone, including KNBC-4, the Times and the often anti-bike L.A. Weekly.

  3. […] Carnage: BMW Rams Cyclists Head On in Bev. Hills, Flees, Caught on Tape (LAist, Courier, Biking in L.A., […]

  4. I’m not so quick to accuse the cyclist of committing misdemeanor battery (242 PC) by striking the driver of the vehicle with his fist. As you point out, it’s certainly at least arguable that the victim acted in self-defense and the threat to the cyclist’s life was still continuing given that the driver remained in operation of the vehicle and he had reportedly preceded the attack with a criminal threat (422 PC) to kill the cyclist followed by the commission of assault with a a deadly weapon (245 PC) — both of which are felonies.

  5. paul livingston says:

    that footage makes me rage.
    let’s find this guy

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