For the second time this week, someone riding a bicycle has been murdered killed by a heartless coward in a motor vehicle.
Or in this case, two heartless cowards.
Multiple sources are reporting that a man was killed in Vernon when he was struck by not one, but two drivers yesterday morning.
The victim was riding on Pacific Avenue (or Pacific Blvd) near 45th Street around 6:30 am Wednesday when he was run down by a driver traveling south on Pacific. He was knocked into the northbound lane, where he was hit by the second driver.
The victim died at the scene. He has been identified as 45-year old William Valle.
Neither driver remained at the scene and assisted the victim, as required by law. There’s no description of either driver or their vehicles at this time.
At that point, Pacific is a six lane virtual highway with a wide, sweeping curve, where drivers could easily exceed the posted 40 mph speed limit at that hour.
There’s no word on how quickly the second crash followed the first, or if it could have been prevented if the first driver had simply stopped after the crash to warn approaching drivers about victim lying in the roadway.
Valle’s death comes two days to the hour after Eric Williams was killed by an alleged drugged hit-and-run driver while riding on PCH in Huntington Beach Monday morning.
This is at least the 49th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the ninth that I’m aware of in Los Angeles County.
Eighteen of those SoCal drivers have now fled the scene, or more than one out of every three fatal crashes involving someone on a bicycle since the first of this year.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for William Valle and all his loved ones.
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