Let’s begin today with a not-so-brief update on the horrific murder of ER Dr. Michael John Mammone as he rode his bike in Dana Point last week.
If you’re not interested, or the subject understandably makes you uncomfortable, you may want to skip down to the next section.
Mammone was riding his mountain bike north on PCH when he stopped at the red light at Crown Valley Parkway around 3 pm Wednesday.
That’s when a white Lexus allegedly driven by 39-year old Long Beach resident Vanroy Evan Smith slammed into him from behind, traveling fast enough to blow through the red light, despite the impact with Mammone’s bike.
Smith then got out of his car, walked back to Mammone and repeatedly stabbed him as he lay injured in the street; Mammone died less than three hours later in the same Providence Mission Hospital ER where he sometimes worked.
Smith was disarmed by a pair of witnesses who detained him until police arrived.
Frighteningly, there is no known connection between the two men, and nothing to suggest it was a case of road rage — though that remains one of the most likely explanations — making the crash appear to be totally random at this time.
Smith faces 25 to life, plus one year, after he was arraigned Friday on a charge of felony murder, with a felony enhancement for the personal use of a knife. He pled not guilty, and is currently being held on $1 million bail.
There have been some reports that Smith was armed with a gun, or possibly a BB gun, and fired several shots either before or after stabbing Mammone; however, there is no mention of a gun of any kind in the OC DA’s press release.
There is also no mention of reports that Smith shouted “White privilege!” as he stabbed Mammone, which was originally reported by Fox News, and has been repeated by a number of conservative news sources. However, Fox appears to have removed any mention of that from their story.
That does not necessarily mean those things did not happen, but there is currently nothing to confirm either accusation. Although RssRyan relates in a lengthy Twitter conversation that a neighbor heard the alleged racist statement, and will be speaking with prosecutors.
Smith did reposted a video discussing white privilege nearly three years ago on what appears to be his Facebook page.
However, Smith’s’ ex-wife denied reports than he was violent or made racist comments during their marriage, noting that the mild-mannered native Jamaican accountant was mixed race, and over half white.
We need to be careful spreading rumors that may ultimately prove to be false.
There is a danger that these reports being spread on conservative media may lead to confirmation bias among some in their audience, incorrectly confirming their false beliefs about people of color.
They could also be used as justification by someone with racist views to retaliate against the next Black or brown bike rider they see.
Also troubling is a photo on Smith’s Facebook page suggesting that he may have been one of us.
How someone who rode a bicycle, even infrequently, could commit such a horrific act against a fellow bike rider is beyond me.
Then again, how any person could do it to anyone is, too.
Photo of Dr. Mammone ghost bike by Photo by Walt Arrrrr. Thanks to Good Citizen for the Facebook information.
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Awful news from San Diego, where an 85-year old man suffered life-threatening brain injuries when he was struck by a bike rider on North Torrey Pines Road near Torrey Pines State Beach.
The victim was reportedly standing in the bike lane when he was struck by a bicycle ridden by a 63-year-old man. He apparently hit his head on the pavement, suffering a skull fracture and brain bleed, while the bike rider suffered a cut above his left eye.
Anyone with information is urged to call the San Diego Police Department Traffic Division at 888/580-8477.
https://twitter.com/G8090Tom/status/1622141839188066304
Thanks to Steven Young for the link.
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Streetsblog looks at the newly unveiled semi-protected bike lanes on Central Ave in South LA. Correction: I originally mistakenly assumed they were on Alameda in DTLA. My apologies.
New parking-protected bike lanes – with nice concrete bus islands – under construction (north end nearly done) on Central Ave – from Century to Imperial pic.twitter.com/6i9NNdovLV
— StreetsblogLA (@StreetsblogLA) February 4, 2023
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Nice to see Jersey City NJ bicyclists aren’t taking the case of the hit-and-run councilwoman lying down.
DeGise was convicted after pleading guilty to hit-and-run for fleeing when she crashed into a bike rider last year; that alone should be an automatic disqualification for public office.
Instead, she walked with a slap on the wrist when the judge fined her five grand and suspended her license for a whole year.
https://twitter.com/bikejc/status/1622320013498613762
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This video convincingly makes the case that if there weren’t any cars, we wouldn’t need traffic lights.
Traffic lights are for cars, and without cars, we don't need traffic lights. https://t.co/GruSA6ojx6
— bikemattic (@bikemattic) February 5, 2023
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The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on going.
Bike riders in Edinburg, Scotland are ridiculing a new advisory lane that is literally narrower than a set of handlebars, calling it a “unicycle lane.”
Huh? After a London cabbie is filmed driving in a protected bike lane, rather than moving over into the taxi lane next to it, commenters claimed he’s not responsible for the lane markings. No, he’s just responsible for obeying them.
No, tossing a bicycle on British railroad tracks is not one of the approved uses for one.
@cycling_in_london Definitely did that ok purpose lol #london #fyp #cyclist #cycling #londonlife #cyclepath #bikepath #cyclelane #cyclingtiktok #londonstreets #bromptonbikes #ebike #taxi #londontaxi #cabbie #londoncabbie
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Local
LAist looks at last week’s mobility debate for the candidates running to replace disgraced CD6 Councilmember Nury Martinez, sponsored by Streets For All. Unfortunately, video of the event doesn’t seem to be posted online yet.
No surprise that the former Governator was involved in a Brentwood bicycle collision, since Arnold Schwarzenegger rides an ebike nearly every day. Except this time, he was driving his massive GMC SUV — making it his second injury crash behind the wheel in a year — although police concluded it was just another “oopsie.” The victim was transported to a hospital with what appeared to be minor injuries, while Arnold took her bike into a shop to have it repaired. Thanks to mcderpy87 and Marcello Calicchio for the heads-up.
VeloNews looks at LA’s Bahati Foundation, founded by former national crit champ Rahsaan Bahati to help children of color succeed in life through bicycling.
State
A proposed bill would improve driver sightlines at crosswalks and intersections through daylighting, by removing parking next to the intersection.
Irvine-based electric truck maker Rivian could be entering the micromobility field, though it’s unclear whether they plan to build an ebike or an e-motorcycle.
San Diego has begun work on a Complete Streets makeover of Park Blvd, including painted bike and bus lanes.
A Santa Barbara writer credits her neighbor with turning a long-neglected tandem gathering dust in the garage into a remade ride for two worth $800.
San Francisco is beginning a long-planned makeover of iconic but deadly Market Street, although plans for sidewalk-level bike lanes have been axed, requiring bike riders to continue sharing the lane with taxis, paratransit and commercial vehicles.
Healdsburg is slated for a $11.8 million grant for a road diet and protected bike lanes on Healdsburg Ave.
National
The US Department of Transportation has issued a Call to Action campaign, asking stakeholders to commit to specific actions in the coming year to reduce serious injuries and deaths on American roadways.
Lyft plans to fight clutter by docking its bikeshare bikes and e-scooters. Which kind of eliminates the whole point of dockless mobility, doesn’t it?
CNN examines the problem of head injuries leading to suicides in female athletes, using the tragic case of US track cyclist Kelly Catlin as one example; Catlin took her own life in her Stanford dorm after suffering a dramatic personality change following a concussion.
People for Bikes ranks the best new bike lanes in the US. Guess how many are in Los Angeles. No, seriously, take a guess.
The Daily Beast says forget electric cars, ebikes are the future of transportation.
They get it. A Yakima, Washington paper says you don’t have to ride that far to catch up with the little kid inside you.
The party is over in Tempe, Arizona, where New Belgium Brewing has pulled the plug on the annual Tour de Fat fundraiser, a decade after the Fat Tire brewers halted the Los Angeles edition.
It may soon be legal to ride your bike drunk in North Dakota. Or your horse, for that matter.
Oklahoma City police released bodycam video of the arrest of a man who allegedly took his own life in jail, after he was originally stopped for riding his bicycle on the wrong side of the street.
Sad news from New York, where yet another ebike fire has left two children with critical injuries, and another child less seriously injured.
A Pennsylvania man has filed a lawsuit over a collision allegedly caused by an Ocean City police officer as both men were riding their bikes on the boardwalk, accusing the cop of riding “at a high, dangerous and unnecessary speed.”
DC now has two competing ebike rebate bills, one of which would provide up to two grand on the purchase of an e-cargo bike, or $1,500 off a standard ebike.
International
A website offers a questionable list of the world’s top 15 “most famous and best” bike brands, ranking Taiwan’s Merida over better know bike brands like Trek, Specialist and Schwinn.
Eddie Redmayne is one of us, as the Theory Of Everything actor had to get off his bike to ask for directions in London’s Notting Hill neighborhood.
PinkBike takes a mountain bike trip through Slovenia in the new short film Road to Trieste.
Your next bike ride could be 1,000 feet in the air above a Chinese theme park. I’ll pass, thank you.
Competitive Cycling
As expected, Sunday’s world ‘cross championship came down to a battle between Dutch pro Mathieu van der Poel and Belgian Wout van Aert, with van der Poel prevailing in a final sprint to the finish.
Finally…
That feeling when it’s time to put a beloved bike down. Why ride an ebike when you could ride a 10-foot-long electric dinosaur.
And meet the very tongue-in-cheek DC Nimbee.
I'm now the only Washington Post-endorsed candidate for MoCo planning board. Checkmate, YIMBYs!https://t.co/KavhZcZ755
— Nimbee (@TheNimbee) February 4, 2023
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Be safe, and stay healthy. And get vaccinated, already.
Oh, and fuck Putin, too.
u can delete this comment: the bike lanes I tweeted about in that SBLA embed – are on Central Avenue – in South L.A. (Watts) – not Alameda in DTLA