Questions in the Silver Lake shooting death of Manuel Santizo, and lots of weekend links

Questions are being raised in the death of Manuel Santizo, the cyclist who was fatally shot in Silver Lake after being bumped by a car.

According to the Eastsider LA, Northeast Division homicide detectives say that while the suspects are believed to be gang members, there is no evidence that Santizo was involved in a gang.

“There is no indication that Manuel was a gang member. Nothing, nothing at all,” (homicide detective P.J.) Morris said.

The Eastsider LA adds that police are questioning something that had sounded odd to me in the original reports.

Also, Morris is puzzled by the fact that the shooters took the time to run down Santizo’s bike before opening fire. In most drive-by shootings, the suspects waste no time in firing their weapons and then fleeing from the scene. “It’s not indicative of a [typical] gang, drive-by shooting,” Morris said.

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The rider killed in a solo bike collision in Coachella last week had been identified as 63-year old Nemesio Herrera of Coachella.

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Witch on a Bicycle switches from confirmed vehicular cyclist to segregated infrastructure supporter, but warns that bad bike infrastructure is worse than no bike infrastructure.

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Bikeside’s Mihai Peteu looks at the Grand Opening of Long Beach’s protected bike lanes. LADOT Bike Blog looks forward to Bike Week. New lights come to the L.A. River Bike Path. Metro bike maps are making their appearance at local train stations. An Indian cyclist passes through the Valley on his way around the world to call attention to the environment. SoCal AAA offers their advice to motorists and cyclists on how to share the road together. A 10-year old Altadena boy is okay after being hit by a car in a SWSS.* When a horse is killed by an out-of-control car, no one says it shouldn’t have been on the road. Long Beach is hosting a meeting on the city’s proposed new bike plan on Tuesday.

Sometimes, bike safety progress comes in baby steps. A Newbury Park woman has ridden over 4,000 miles for charity. Best of luck for two UC Santa Barbara cyclists who have qualified for the National Championships. Bakersfield’s Bike Festival takes place in two weeks; and yes, I have walked those very streets. The latest nuptial trend is bike weddings, including this one at L.A.’s Mormon Temple. A 12-year old Modesto girl is in grave condition after being hit by a car. A Redwood City cyclist is beaten up in a 7-Eleven parking lot in a road rage dispute. Once you’ve downed a pint or two down, your risk of a bike crash goes up — as a Tulare rider just learned.

After getting hit by a car, a Kingman AZ teenager is cited for riding on the wrong side of the road and not having brakes on his bike. In a case that doesn’t quite add up, a 78-year old Missouri cyclist is killed when he runs into a Highway Patrol car parked on the side of the road; aside from the question of why he couldn’t see it, it would seem to require traveling at a surprising rate of speed. A Portland, Maine paper reports that a five-year old boy was injured when he collided a dump truck; no hint of press bias there. A New Hampshire woman moves to San Jose by bike. After the NY Post’s latest anti-bike diatribe, the paper publishes some voices of reason. New bike lanes are about to bloom in Philadelphia. Delaware tells cyclists they’re riding the wrong way. The Maryland Department of Transportation says cyclists are just being safe, not arrogant. A Georgia cyclist faces a charge of vehicular homicide a year after his alleged failure to yield causes the death of a motorcyclist; I wonder how many drivers have faced similar charges after cutting off bike riders? A Florida pastor plans to bike 1500 miles to New York to raise funds for Haiti.

Tips on how to bike commute safely. Large trucks continue to take their deadly toll on UK cyclists. A UK man is arrested for a drunken bike ride through the local supermarket in a chicken suit. The Dutch didn’t always ride like the Dutch, which gives hope to Dubliners, as well as the rest of us. Taylor Phinney’s hard-luck freshman year on the pro tour continues, as he crashes in the Tour de Romandie, shattering his bike but finishing on a spare. Bangalore University works to become bike-friendly through the country’s first university bike share program. A 10-day bike race wraps up in Ho Chi Minh City.

Finally, in an absolutely astounding case, after a Lancaster driver is stopped at a DUI check point, police notice his state of intoxication, as well as the fresh blood on the bumper of his car — and trace his route back to find a dead pedestrian lying on the side of the road.

*Single Witness Suicide Swerve

2 comments

  1. altadenablog says:

    I didn’t know there was a name for such things! I’ll make sure to use it at first opportunity!

    • bikinginla says:

      If you like that one, you’ll love SMIDSY, which is the cause of most cycling collisions — Sorry Mate, I Didn’t See You.

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