The victim was already dead when police arrived; there’s no word at this time on how the crash occurred.
The driver, identified as 27-year old Escondido resident Alexander Gendron, was tracked down about a mile away, with police relying on witnesses, license plate readers and a drone to find him.
He was booked on suspicion of leaving the scene of a collision resulting in injury or death, DUI causing injury or death, and vehicular manslaughter. That could be upgraded to murder if there is a previous DUI on his record.
Given the hour, the victim could have been homeless, or someone riding to or from work. Or it could have been someone just out for an early morning ride.
Anyone with information is urged to call Traffic Accident Investigator Cpl. Matt Bowen of the Carlsbad Police Department at 442/339-2282.
This is at least the 41st bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the eighth that I’m aware of in San Diego County.
This was also the 13th bike rider killed by a hit-and-run driver in Southern California since the first of the year
My deepest sympathy and prayers for the victim and all their loved ones.
Day 241 of LA’s Vision Zero failure to end traffic deaths by 2025.
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This, too, is the cost of traffic violence.
A hit-and-run driver severely damaged a popular Hollywood sculpture Monday evening, literally decapitating a statue of early film icon Anna May Wong, widely considered to be the first Chinese American film star.
The statue is, or rather, was, part of the Four Ladies of Hollywood Gazebo at Hollywood Blvd and La Brea Ave, a popular photo site for tourists, even if it has been without the small statue of Marilyn Monroe that used to top it until an influencer stole it as a prank and broke it.
According to Beverly Press & Park LaBrea News, the unknown driver fled the scene after crashing into it around 5:50 pm Monday. He’s described only as a male in a full-size, older model, white work van.
Anyone with information is urged to call the LAPD’s Hollywood Division at 213/972-2971.
Let’s hope they find the coward and force ’em to pay for repairs.
Or rather, she wants to close it to cars so we can open it up for everyone else.
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Researchers are discovering that automated traffic cams are more popular than you think, for one good reason.
They work.
According to Bloomberg,
But writ large, the track record of automatic enforcement is overwhelmingly positive. In surveys most Americans understand and value the upsides that traffic cameras offer. A 2022 study found that a majority of American adults back automatic traffic enforcement, and that presenting it as a tool to advance racial justice can make it even more popular. Earlier research identified consistently strong support. A 2012 study of people living across 14 US cities found that two-thirds of them supported red light cameras. Papers published in 2014 and 2016 found that 76% of residents in the District of Columbia and 62% of those in suburban Montgomery County, Maryland, respectively, supported speed cameras.
Public support can transcend party lines and geography. Sarah Seo, a law professor now at New York University, found in a 2020 reportthat a majority of likely voters across the US supported “moving most traffic enforcement to traffic cameras and non-police agencies” (such as a transportation department, as Berkeley, California, has explored), including almost two-thirds of Democrats, a plurality of independents, and 42% of Republicans.
How can we make Pico Blvd safer and more accessible? LADOT is studying improvements like safer crossings, bike lanes and traffic calming measures, and we need your input! Take the survey by Sep 8! ➡️ https://t.co/Llo3i4o3yVpic.twitter.com/6xR7POOLE9
But sometimes, it’s the people on two wheels behaving badly.
An 85-year old San Francisco man ended up with multiple injuries when something knocked his cane out from under him and sent him flying as he walked in a bike lane — although he has no idea if it was someone on a bicycle, someone getting out of an Uber, or something or someone else.
More on the road-raging British bicyclist who allegedly threw his bike at a car in a fit of rage after the driver “bumped” into him, causing over $1,300 in damages, even through the driver pinky swears he was only going 2 mph at the time of the crash. Which kinda stretches credibility, because most cars can idle faster than that if left in gear.
In an op-ed for the nonprofit Voice of OC, a Huntington Beach man who identifies himself as an “automobile driver, a cyclist, and an e-bike rider” says enough with passing performative ebike laws on a city-by-city basis, since state law already covers it — including defining any two-wheeled electric device without pedals as a motorbike.
Commissioners in Florida’s Seminole County are hesitating to install new green bike lanes, after receiving a letter from the state ordering them to remove green crosswalks.
More proof that bicycling is good for you, as new Italian study shows that riding your bike as little as 2.5 miles to work four to five times a week is enough to boost your heart health as much as 30%.
This is what keeps me up at night. And what really pisses me off.
Because not only did the police, city and news media fail to inform us about yet another fatal hit-and-run, but the victim was a kid just out for a bike ride.
Here’s what we know so far about the needless death of Michael Smith, courtesy of a press release from Streets Are For Everyone.
The loved ones of Michael Kejuan Ramaun James Smith, Streets Are For Everyone, community members, and members of SAFE Families will host a Ghost Bike Memorial event to honor and remember Michael Smith, who was struck and killed by a speeding driver on July 22nd, 2025.
Michael was riding his bicycle on 83rd Street, headed toward Main Street to pick up a friend for a bike ride. He was struck and instantly killed by a speeding driver who was allegedly traveling at 75 MPH on a residential street. The driver fled the scene but was later arrested and has since been released on bail.
Michael, who would have celebrated his 13th birthday on September 16, was a radiant and compassionate child who loved riding bikes. He was also an entrepreneur, running his own ice cream truck since the age of seven, with dreams of growing his business and future.
This is at least the 36th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the 14th that I’m aware of in Los Angeles County; this was also the seventh we’ve learned about in the City of LA.
Six of those seven Los Angeles victims lost their lives riding in South LA.
Michael Smith was the 12th SoCal bike rider killed by a hit-and-run driver since the first of the year — fully one third of everyone killed riding a bicycle in Southern California this year.
But at least this time, they — allegedly — caught the heartless coward who left Michel to die in the street.
If you want to attend the ghost bike installation tomorrow, here is the information from the press release. If you do, ask Councilmember Price why we continue to all this to happen in South LA.
Ellen Atwater, Michael’s Mother, and other family members
Councilmember Curren D Price Jr.
Damian Kevitt, Executive Director of Streets Are For Everyone
Pastor Patricia Strong-Fargas, Co-Chair, Faith for SAFEr Streets
John Jones III, Founder of East Side Riders
Members of SAFE Families
Friends and community members
In addition to the ghost bike, 13 white doves will be released in honor of Michael, who would have turned 13 years old next month.
Update: My News LA reports the crash occurred around 2:55 pm. Michael died after being taken to a hospital.
The victim, who was identified only as a man in his 50s or 60s, was apparently riding on East 95th Street when he was struck by a driver crossing on San Pedro around 1:20 am.
He died at the scene.
The driver fled the scene; there’s no description of the suspect or their vehicle at this time.
According to Fox11, the crash left food, wheels and a recycling cart strewn across the intersection. The station reports that friends and relatives of the victim gathered near the scene afterwards, describing him as a “nice guy who never caused any trouble.”
The victim’s dog was following behind his bicycle, and wasn’t hurt in the collision. He was taken in by a volunteer group.
There is a bike lane on San Pedro, but nothing on 95th. The intersection is controlled only with a stop sign on 95th; it’s unclear if it would have be lighted at that hour.
This is at least the 35th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the 13th that I’m aware of in Los Angeles County; this was also the sixth we’ve learned about in the City of LA.
And he was the 11th SoCal bike rider killed by a hit-and-run driver since the first of the year
My deepest sympathy and prayers for the victim and their loved ones.
There’s no word on how the crash occurred, or how long the woman, who hasn’t been publicly identified, may have been down on the Bellflower street she was discovered. Or if she could have survived if the driver had stopped and called for help, as the law requires.
Investigators are looking for the driver of a white pickup, believed to have fled north on Clark Street.
This is at least the 27th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the 11th that I’m aware of in Los Angeles County.
This was also the 6th person to die riding a bicycle in LA County in less than a month, and the tenth SoCal bike rider killed by a hit-and-run driver since the first of the year.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for the victim and her loved ones.
The victim, who was just riding his bike home from work, was lucky to escape serious injury, despite being sent flying off his bike.
That was the driver’s second attempt at running him down. The first came when the driver swerved at him from behind and missed.
He was more successful in his second attempt, after apparently turning around and cutting across traffic lanes to target the victim from the other side of the road.
Fullerton police are looking for as a red two-door car, possibly a Dodge Challenger, and hoping to find security video showing the car’s license plate,
Anyone with information is urged to call the Fullerton Police Department at 714/738-6800.
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The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on going.
No bias here. Yucatán Magazine says bike lanes in Mérida, capital of the Mexican state, are showing mixed results after three years, with some people using them while others still bike in the traffic lanes, while suggesting the mere presence of the lanes contribute to greater traffic congestion. No, too many cars are the cause of traffic congestion. And of course people still ride in traffic lanes if bike lanes don’t take them where they need to go.
But sometimes, it’s the people on two wheels behaving badly.
The Pasadena Planning Commission unanimously voted to turn North Lake Ave into a new Old Pasadena, with plans calling for wider sidewalks, landscaped medians, a comprehensive streetscape strategy, and new bicycle facilities. Which could mean anything from physically protected bike lanes to a few random bike racks.
Westlake Village became the latest city to join in on the rush to crack down on ebikes, banning all electric micromobility devices from virtually everywhere but city streets, while allowing sheriff’s deputies to ensure compliance, but “only during lawful stops.” Well, that’s comforting.
State
Fullerton’s 3rd Annual Christmas in July Bike Ride will roll through the city’s streets tomorrow, with Santa Claus trading in his sleigh for a mountain bike. Please pass along my wish for Santa that someone will find the road-raging SOB who ran down that Fullerton bike rider, and lock his ass up for a damn long time.
An op-ed in the Guardian says the bicycle is an important part of Ireland’s past, and Irish cyclist Ben Healy’s brief time in the Tour de France’s yellow jersey can inspire a revival of bike riding in the country.
Reuters says Australian Ben O’Connor “stormed to a sensational victory,” on yesterday’s stage 18 of the Tour de France, his “eyes blazing with determination,” as he “launched a ferocious solo attack on the fearsome Col de la Loze.” Well, okay then.
After becoming the first African man or woman to win a Monument, Kim Le Court reflected on her unusual entry to the sport, taking it up because her parents and brothers were bicyclists, after first trying tennis, golf, touch rugby and soccer.
“We need to be thinking about this from every angle, from the way we design vehicles, to what safety features are in vehicles, to employing technology like speed cameras across the state in a thoughtful way, to driver’s education,” she (Friedman) said.
Friedman also commended West Hollywood and other cities for implementing safer traffic measures, calling the increase in fatal collisions a “public health crisis.”
Because a public health crisis is exactly how we need to be looking at traffic violence. Just like we should consider gun violence, but don’t.
In both cases.
The paper also quotes Streets Are For Everyone, aka SAFE, founder Damian Kevitt citing a “shocking” increase in traffic violence in the city of just 34,000 people.
Kevitt also cited the problem of drivers fleeing following a crash because the penalties for hit-and-run are more lenient than for DUI.
“That is a huge factor and that is where the law needs to catch up,” he said.
Kevitt added that reducing traffic congestion by adding surface area on streets has not been successful in Los Angeles and that using alternative means of transportation is a more effective way of reducing vehicle congestion.
However, we’re not likely to reduce congestion until people feel safer using other forms of transportation on those congested streets.
Because the hit-and-run alert programs for both Los Angeles and California were copied from Colorado’s successful program, which itself was based on the very successful program patterned after the Amber alert system that originated in Denver.
The only difference is they use it, and we don’t. Which just might have something to do with why Colorado solved every felony hit-and-run in 2022, while only around 20% ever get solved in California.
Or maybe they just care enough to devote the resources necessary to solve them, and the cops and elected leaders out here don’t.
A Hollywood judge will now determine whether a 62-year old Pasadena man will stand trial for killing his wife, dismembering her and stuffing her remains in a suitcase, then taking his bicycle on a train, riding his bike to North Figueroa and setting the suitcase on fire in a Home Depot parking lot, after his attorney questioned the man’s mental competency. Gee, ya think?
Burbank unveiled its draft Safer Street action plan, including plans for traffic calming measures on nine separate streets; you can weigh in at the August 12th city council meeting.
Just like West Hollywood last weekend, nearly 100 people in San Rafael gathered outside City Hall Monday evening to honor a “beloved husband, coach and cyclist” who was killed while riding his bike last month, and demand that the city fix the dangerous intersection where he was was run down by a driver.
A Canadian woman just set new Guinness World Records for the fastest speed on a Penny Farthing by a woman at 25.93 mph, and the fastest women’s one kilometer on a Penny Farthing. But bikes like that have only been around for 150 years, so no big deal.
The victim, who has not been publicly identified, was trying to cross Lankershim Blvd south of Arminta Street around 10:55 pm when he was struck by the driver of an older-model silver Dodge Ram pickup traveling south on Lankershim.
He was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The driver continued driving south without stopping.
KTLA-5 reports that the victim was riding outside of the crosswalk, which is absolutely irrelevant since there is no requirement for bicyclists to use one. And just like drivers, they are entitled to move from one side of the street to the other, whether turning, crossing or making a U-turn.
So the question is whether the victim had the right-of-way, which could depend on where the driver came from and how fast they were going.
Anyone with information is urged to call LAPD Valley Traffic Bureau Detective Otrosina at 818/644-8036, or Detective Martinez at 818/644-8033.
As always, there is a standing $50,000 reward for any fatal hit-and-run in the City of Los Angeles.
This is at least the 26th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the tenth that I’m aware of in Los Angeles County; it’s also the fifth we’ve learned about in the City of Los Angeles.
This was the fifth person to die riding a bicycle in LA County in less than a month, and the ninth SoCal bike rider killed by a hit-and-run driver since the first of the year.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for the victim and his loved ones.
July 17, 2025 /
bikinginla / Comments Off on 73-year old man busted for fatal WeHo hit-and-run, new CicLAvia maps revealed, and we all need a pro-bike guidebook
Day 198 of LA’s Vision Zero failure to end traffic deaths by 2025.
Adams is accused of running Ackerman down from behind as on Fountain Ave near Gardner, and continuing west on Fountain without stopping.
Authorities said he was arrested after witnesses and tipsters helped identify his car. WeHo Timescredits Florida resident Shanna Meade with giving investigators a video of Adams’ car and license plate.
Despite the arrest, the case remains under investigation. Anyone with information is urged to call LA County Sheriff’s traffic investigators at the West Hollywood station at 310/855-8850.
Unless additional charges are filed, Adams faces a maximum of four years behind bars under California’s lenient hit-and-run laws.
Matt Parker, one of Ackerman’s closest friends, gave a moving statement, while his fiancé and friends wrote personal messages on the freshly painted white bike.
Ackerman had recently returned to Los Angeles to work as associate at DTLA law firm Morgan Lewis. He was likely returning home from a late day at work when he was killed, have just taken up bike commuting and transit use rather than driving.
The ghost bike ceremony was organized by the West Hollywood Bicycle Coalition with assistance from Streets Are For Everyone.
A larger vigil will be held Friday starting at 6 pm at Fountain and Gardner, followed by a short march to West Hollywood City Hall for a rally and press conference.
Everyone is urged to attend to call for safer streets in WeHo, and throughout the area.
And yes, I mean everyone.
Today’s photos show the newly installed ghost bike for Blake Ackerman, along with the installation ceremony.
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CicLAvia unveiled the map for October’s Heart of LA CicLAvia, marking the 15th anniversary of America’s largest open streets event.
However, there are two events preceding it, in August and September.
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Good question.
Having seen the congestion, safety, and emergency access arguments deployed against bike lanes in literally hundreds of places, why have we not developed a little guidebook or something on how to deal with them?
As I recall, back in the dark ages when I served on the board, staffers at the former Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition — now BikeLA — developed a short guide on how to respond to common objections.
But it really would make sense for someone to pen a handbook with effective arguments against the most common complaints, which would undoubtedly become an instant best seller.
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Call it elder abuse.
Anyone who is still riding a bicycle at 85 deserves better than to be killed by an alleged drunk driver, like this man in Portland, Oregon.
The same goes for an 83-year of British Columbia woman killed by the driver of a semi truck, who played the international Get Out of Jail Free card by claiming he didn’t see her.
The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on going.
No bias here. London’s walking and cycling commissioner decries the “antagonism” between bicyclists and motorists on social media, saying it’s “not representative of real life.” But all the Evening Standard wants to talk about is his statement that some bike riders “are idiots” — even though he included motorists in that statement, too.
But sometimes, it’s the people on bikes behaving badly.
Chico breaks ground on a new bike track that will bring state-of-the-art amenities for riders. Presumably without damaging any ancient archaeological artifacts.
National
Walmart has issued a recall of 200 children’s bikes that pose a risk of illness or death due to excessive levels of lead; parents are urged to destroy the bikes sold under the SPPTTY brand.
Two men from Grand Rapids, Michigan are way ahead of schedule on their fundraising ride to Los Angeles to benefit Pedal to the Rescue, a nonprofit on a mission to support the heroes who fought LA’s wildfires, on track to finish the ride in half of the 82 days originally estimated.
Cycling Weekly tests four of the best road bikes for under $2,400, and says you can get a lot more for your money than you could ten years ago. Tell me about it. I spent about that much for a 2014 LeMond, which doesn’t hold a candle to today’s bikes. Although putting a candle on a bike doesn’t make a lot of sense.
Um, okay. Dame Joan Collins — yes, that Joan Collins — pens a confusing “diary” post that starts with complaints about the British prime minister, even though it’s about the invasion of Lime Bikes, or maybe an invasion of immigrants on Lime Bikes, before moving on in truly Trumpian fashion to talk about hard working movie people and telling Ingrid Bergman’s daughter to bugger off.
Um, okay, too. A new Chinese study examines “The nonlinear relationship between built environment and cycling propensity for different travel purposes − based on extreme gradient boosting decision tree.”
Competitive Cycling
Tragic news from Italy’s Giro della Valle d’Aosta, where 19-year old Italian cyclist Samuele Privitera died following a crash on Wednesday’s stage 1; Privitera was a member of the Jayco AlUla World Tour team, owned and managed by Alex Merckx, son of the legendary Eddy Merckx. Stage 2 was cancelled following Privitera’s death.
Day 197 of LA’s Vision Zero failure to end traffic deaths by 2025.
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Let’s call this a trial balloon.
For years now, I’ve been calling for an end to hit-and-runs, in a region where nearly half of all collisions end with a fleeing driver, according to a report from LA Weekly that is no longer online.
Although to be fair, the LAPD has consistently said that roughly 33% percent of all collisions are hit-and-runs, based on COMPSTAT data, less than 10% of which ever get solved. In fact, most are never investigated if someone isn’t dead or seriously injured
But either way, it’s too damn high.
While the legislature has worked around the edges to address the problem, those efforts haven’t gone nearly far enough to put the slightest dent into the problem.
So I’m proposing a simplified version of the reforms I’ve been calling for, to see what you think, before I try starting a petition and taking it to legislators and advocacy groups.
You can leave your thoughts in the comments below.
Make the penalty for hit-and-run equal to the penalty for DUI, including fines, jail time and license suspensions, to remove one of the primary incentives to flee.
Anyone who leaves the scene of a KSI crash — Killed or Serious Injury — will automatically have their license revoked by the DMV, regardless of any criminal conviction or plea,
Anyone who leaves the scene of a KSI crash will have their car impounded as evidence once it’s found; upon conviction, the car will be sold and the proceeds donated to a victim’s fund, after any loans or liens are payed off.
Prosecutors should have the option of charging drivers with 2nd degree murder, or attempted murder, for making the conscious decision to flee and leave the victim to suffer the consequences.
That’s it.
It is, admittedly, a tough approach.
But it’s the only approach I’m aware of that will remove the incentive to flee, while making the penalty harsh enough to make drivers think twice. Or three times, even.
And let’s be honest. Anyone who flees a serious crash has already demonstrated that they can’t be trusted to be obey the law, and shouldn’t be allowed on the streets.
And I promise that’s the last time I’m going to use the phrase Mid-City here. Unless it isn’t.
As I recall, the project was originally proposed in those heady days before the pandemic, so it’s been in a works for quite awhile.
The neighborhood greenway will be one of the city’s few examples of a bicycle boulevard, or a series of bicycle priority streets, similar to Santa Monica’s successful Michigan Avenue Neighborhood Greenway, aka MANGo.
It will run on on Rosewood Ave, Formosa Ave and Orange Drive to connect La Cienega and Hollywood boulevards, through a series of diverters, traffic circles and protected bike lanes to provide a low-stress, relatively carfree route through the Mid-City area.
Oops.
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Streets For All says we can do better than an unprotected bike lane on Alameda and Spring streets, and want you to tell LADOT so.
.@LADOTofficial is working to improve safety and mobility along Spring and Alameda St. The Mobility Plan 2035 calls for an unprotected bike lane and pedestrian improvements – but we can do better! Ask for protected bike lanes by taking their survey: https://t.co/xoDsE5qYt8pic.twitter.com/FghvI02qAP
More on the complaints from business owners on Black Mountain Road in San Diego’s Rancho Peñasquitos neighborhood, who somehow don’t think their businesses can survive the loss of just 30 to 40 parking spaces. As if their customers won’t walk a few more feet to visit them, and a safer road for bike riders doesn’t offer the potential to bring them far more customers.
New Mexico’s Picuris Pueblo, one of 21 Native American nations that have survived for centuries in the region, is investing in its own community with the newest bike park in the US, which will open with a competition offering more than $8,000 in total prize money.
The organizers of British Columbia’s Okanagan Granfondo are under fire following a crash killed one man and injured two others when a driver slammed into a group of riders, and organizers allowed the fondo to continue as if nothing happened.
If cycling events for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics remain on the current dates, it could conflict with the Tour de France, forcing the ’28 Tour to start weeks earlier and throwing off the year’s entire cycling calendar.
