Yet another Southern California bike rider has been killed by a cowardly hit-and-run driver.
According to the Riverside Press-Enterprise, Riverside police found the 53-year old victim lying in the westbound bike lane on Victoria Avenue, just west of Myers Street, around 7:45 Saturday morning, after receiving a report of a bicyclist down.
Police initially thought the man, who has not been publicly identified, had fallen off his bicycle. However, hospital officials reported his injuries were consistent with being hit by a motor vehicle.
Unfortunately, no witnesses have come forward, so there is no description of the suspect or the vehicle used in the crime.
Video from the scene shows a black road bike and silver helmet lying on the side of the road.
Screen grab from KTLA report
No other information is available at this time.
Regardless of how the crash may have happened, there is simply no excuse, ever, for leaving a crash victim bleeding in the street. The driver should face a murder charge for making a conscious decision to let the victim die, rather than calling for help and providing assistance as the law requires.
We’ll never know if he might have survived if he’d gotten help right away.
Anyone with information is urged to call Detective Zach Fishell at 951-826-8723, or email zfishell@riversideca.gov.
Let’s hope they find the coward responsible for this crash. And that prosecutors treat this needless death with the seriousness it demands.
This is at least the 14th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the first I’m aware of in Riverside County.
Yet another bike rider has been killed by a heartless hit-and-run driver, left to die on the side of a road just outside San Jacinto in Riverside County.
She was identified as 57-year old Hemet resident Vivian Thomas.
There’s no word on how long she may have been there, or if she might have survived her injuries if the driver had stopped and called for help, as required by law.
Let alone basic human decency.
If and when the hit-and-run driver is caught, he or she should face a 2nd degree murder charge for making a conscious decision to let the victim die. But probably won’t.
This is the 49th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the sixth in Riverside County.
Seventeen of those SoCal deaths have been the result of hit-and-run.
Update: The Press-Enterprise reports Thomas was struck from behind by a Chevrolet or GMC truck or SUV. She had been dead about six hours when she was found, placing the time of the crash sometime around or before midnight.
Anyone with information is urged to call the CHP San Gorgonio Pass office at 951/769-2000.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for Vivian Thomas and all her loved ones.
If you haven’t read it yet, don’t miss yesterday’s guest post Letter From St. Louis, from CyclingSavvy’s Karen Karabell.
Go ahead. We’ll wait.
Then buckle in. We’ve got a lot of ground to cover today.
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Don’t bother showing up for this weekend’s triathlon in Torrance.
Word comes from Todd Munson that the race has been called on account of apparent greed and billing irregularities from the cities involved, and not involved.
This is what the organizers had to say.
Yesterday, the city of Torrance canceled the 2016 LA Triathlon at Torrance Beach. With much regret, we are forced to announce this cancellation to our participants and sponsors only 4 days prior to race day. We understand that the cancellation will come with great disappointment to those of you who have worked hard and prepared for months toward this year’s triathlon. We are disappointed by the unexpected and unprecedented circumstances and demands that have unfolded to cause this cancellation.
We have listed the key points that led to the city’s cancellation of our event in an effort to offer some immediate transparency to all participants:
On August 31st, the City of Torrance sent to Pacific Sports an email demanding advanced payment, in full, to the city, prior to the event, for city services. There was no detail of the charges, simply amounts in total and the requirement to bring two cashier’s checks by 5pm. This is not standard practice in other municipalities and certainly not in those where all previous invoices had been paid in a timely fashion.
In the same email on August 31st, we were informed that a significant separate payment was also required to be paid to the neighboring City of Palos Verdes, a city in which we have no footprint, no permit, no participants enter their city as part of our course, no liability coverage, and no relationship of any kind. This demand is unprecedented in our 36 year history as an event production company, and to our knowledge unprecedented in the event industry in the United States. This payment is demanded by Torrance (to be paid to Palos Verdes) although we have never been made aware of the apparent business relationship (although it has been requested) between Torrance (where we do have permits) and the city of Palos Verdes.
Also in this email, it was finally revealed by the City of Torrance, after an audit requested by Pacific Sports, the city had significantly overbilled us by an amount in excess of 30% to the total in 2015 for city services. We have strong evidence that the 2014 invoice may have been overbilled as well. Importantly, we have no reliability that the advance payment demanded for 2016 (without detail of its calculation) is backed up by verifiable charges which will only be available after the event has occurred.
Since August 31st, we have worked tirelessly with all levels of the city government including the city council and Mayor’s office in an attempt to bring resolution. We offered a structured and fair written compromise on these issues in attempt to insure the event went on as planned on September 11th. Ultimately, the city offered no compromise or proposed solution and informed us they had unilaterally canceled the event.
We are upset and deeply disappointed by the cancellation, but the requirements were unreasonable and excessive. Accepting the terms would have compromised the entire event and were untenable for us to continue at the current site for the LA Triathlon.
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Yet another teenager has been injured riding her bicycle in Riverside, where it’s apparently open season on bike-riding school kids.
A 14-year old girl is in stable condition after being hit by a pickup while riding in a crosswalk just 100 feet from her school Wednesday morning. The driver fled the scene after stopping briefly; she was taken into custody on a nearby highway about 10 minutes later.
Although despite what the story says, it’s hard to imagine the driver was “fully cooperative” with police when she tried to make a getaway before being caught.
Is cycling in traffic safe? I can find statistical support for any answer I want: yes, no, who knows. My own experiences suggest the answer should be no, not safe. In 2009 I was rear-ended while riding on Los Feliz Boulevard; last year I was brushed (side-swiped) on Fountain Avenue. I can recount several other close passes, terrifying moments — the usual stuff that you will hear from almost any cyclist. I shrugged off these experiences when they happened, but they still haunt me. They’ve also made me into a poor advocate; I cannot argue for cycling’s essential safety, I am a personal testament to its dangers. As much as I want to believe the opposite, little by little I’ve had to admit to myself that I don’t feel safe on the road. I never feel safe out there.
It’s a very well-written and challenging piece, and one that poses some very difficult questions.
If anyone wants to respond to it, let me know. I’ll be happy to share your thoughts here.
The team contacted him a few hours after the video went online to apologize.
They should give him an autographed team bike, at the very least. And a new pair of shorts, since he probably needs them after that.
Meanwhile, Lance’s doping ban has been partially lifted, so he is now free to compete in non-bike related Olympic sports, like ski jumping, pole vaulting and synchronized swimming.
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Local
Props to CD1 Councilmember Gil Cedillo for beginning work to create a pedestrian plaza, including bike racks, on the Hoover Triangle in University Park. Now if he could just do something to make it safer to bike or walk there.
WeHoVille examines the 18-month timeline to reconstruct Santa Monica Blvd through Beverly Hills; the street will be widened, providing enough room for the bike lanes that won’t be installed. Increased costs and the objections of residents to widening one narrow section of the street was given as the reason not to install much-needed bike lanes on the boulevard. So why won’t they commit to adding them now that the street is being widened anyway?
Fresno jurors find an accused career criminal not guilty of attempted murder of a police officer in a struggle that began when the cops tried to stop him for riding without a light.
Zocolo Public Square says modern roads resulted from a coalition of early bicyclists and rural farmers banding together to demand better streets, only to see cyclists squeezed out with the advent of the automobile.
Build your own DIY ebike that looks like it would probably alert the bomb squad.
The Tacoma teenager tackled by police as she rode her bicycle through a mall parking lot is suing the police department, as well as the officer in question, the mall and its security company.
A Chicago area writer can’t seem to figure out if he’s pro or anti bike, saying allowing bicycles in wilderness areas is a bad idea, but giving bicyclists the same rights as drivers is a good one — especially if it means more riders get tickets.
An Op-Ed writer in the Chicago Tribune complains about a parking protected bike lane, and insists that bike riders can’t be ticketed — or pay fees — because they don’t have operators licenses. Never mind that most bicyclists have driver’s licenses, like most other human beings in this country, and can be ticketed even without them.
Cleveland officials say the bike lane that was removed to provide parking for the Hilton hotel wasn’t really removed because it was never really a bike lane to begin with.
Ottawa officials say it’s okay that bike lanes on a newly opened bridge are too narrow to meet official guidelines, because they’re not really bike lanes. Evidently, they’ve been talking with the people in Cleveland.
An Aussie writer calls for a network of segregated cycle routes to replace painted bike lanes, augmented by a network of shared quietways where cars don’t own the roads. Which sounds a lot like the apparently forgotten Bicycle Friendly Streets called for in LA’s Mobility Plan.
Finally…
Bicycling may be good for your health, but good sex may kill you. Seriously, if you’re already on probation for drug charges and carrying an “unknown white substance” on your bike, don’t ride on the damn sidewalk.
A bike rider was hospitalized after being struck by a car in Pomona Monday night; no word on the victim’s condition. Thanks to Joe Linton for the heads-up.
Sad news from Ohio, as Danny Chew, two-time winner of the Race Across America, was paralyzed from the waist down after a solo fall while riding with a friend near Lodi, Ohio.
Chew was riding around 20 to 25 mph when he drifted off the road as the result of a dizzy spell, and broke his neck crashing into a drainage ditch. His long-term prognosis following emergency surgery won’t be known for several days.
Former LA City Controller Laura Chick endorses Jesse Creed in his race to oust incumbent Paul “No Bikes On Westwood” Koretz from the city council. Meanwhile, Josef-Bray Ali is hosting a fundraiser this Monday in his race to unseat Gil “No Bikes Anywhere” Cedillo.
Curbed races to Dodger Stadium to find the fastest way to get there from Union Station; the bicycle finished a close second to the car. But didn’t have to pay those parking fees, either.
That didn’t take long. Just weeks after the Raleigh bike store opened in Santa Monica, thieves broke in early Monday and stole five e-bikes worth nearly $20,000.
Cycling in the South Bay’s Seth Davidson urges everyone to come out to support bike safety efforts in NIMBY haven Palos Verdes Estates at tonight’s Traffic Safety Committee meeting.
A writer for a North San Diego County paper calls for curb protected bike lanes to replace the painted lanes in the wake of a hit-and-run that left a cyclist seriously injured.
The New York Times discovers the Rolling Coal movement, and drivers who think they have a God-given right to belch soot and smoke in the face of bike riders and pedestrians.
Montreal considers improving safety for bicyclists by narrowing lanes, reducing speed limits and moving stop lines back to make room for bike riders at traffic lights.
A recent Polish immigrant tells the horrifying story of the vicious gay bashing he suffered while riding his bike in a Dublin park, and the suggestion from the investigating officer that he somehow provoked it. And what the hell difference would it make if he did?
The police say the victim, who has been identified only as a man, was headed north on Meadowbrook when he “steered” into the intersection around 7:40 pm, and was struck by the eastbound pickup, whose driver was reportedly unable to stop in time.
The question is what does that mean? The implication is the victim was turning onto Jurupa; however, he also may have been attempting to cross and swerved to avoid the truck at the last minute.
The other question is why wasn’t the driver able to stop in time?
The police press release implies that the cyclist may have run the stop sign on Meadowbrook and ridden out into the path of the truck on the uncontrolled street, where the driver would have the right-of-way. However, that would depend on whether there were independent witnesses other than the driver who saw the victim ride out in front of the truck.
It’s also possible that he may have come to a stop, and simply misjudged the speed of the truck before riding onto the five lane, 45 mph street, or that the driver was speeding, giving the illusion that he had time to turn or cross the street. Or maybe the driver just wasn’t paying attention, and didn’t see the cyclist until it was too late.
Anyone with information is urged to call Traffic Detective Ken Madsen at 951/826-8723.
Hopefully their investigation will go a lot deeper than what’s contained in their press release.
This is the 7th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year,* and the first in Riverside County. It’s also the eight bicycling fatality in Riverside in just the last two years.
Update: Raw video from the scene shows the truck stopped in the center turn lane just beyond the intersection, with the bike stuck underneath, suggesting that the victim was crossing the street when he was struck. It also shows an open bottle of vodka standing upright next to his covered body, implying that he may have been drinking. But be forewarned, the video is very difficult to watch.
As soon as the train passed, she continued across the tracks while the crossing arms were reportedly still down and the warning lights flashing. She was then hit and killed by a train traveling north on the tracks, whose approach would have been hidden from sight by the other train.
The victim is identified only as an apparent transient in her 30s.
This is the 20th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the third in Riverside County. That compares to 41 in SoCal this time last year, and six in the county.
She is also the first bike rider to be killed in a collision with a train anywhere in Southern California since August of last year.
Update: The Press-Enterprise has identified the victim as 31-year old Virginia Gadberry of Riverside.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for Virginia Gadberry and her loved ones.
For the first 26 days of this month, there hadn’t been a single bicycling fatality anywhere in Southern California. It looked, for a time, like we might actually finish the year without another rider losing his life
Witnesses told police that he began weaving as he struggled to ride uphill. As he did, he reportedly drifted into the far left lane on the six lane street, and was clipped from behind by a car traveling in the same direction.
He was pronounced dead at the scene.
The driver stopped, and was not suspected of being under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
To make matters worse, Mark Friis reports the collision occurred in the same spot where David Mendez lost his life earlier this year. Mendez was the first bike rider killed this year; with luck, Contreras will be the last.
This is the 82nd bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the 13th in Riverside County.
Let’s hope we can finish the year without another one.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for Israel Contreras and all his family.
The victim was pronounced dead at a local hospital. He has been identified only as a 61-year old Riverside resident pending notification of next of kin.
The collision is still under investigation; however, the 52-year old driver was arrested under suspicion of driving under the influence.
Anyone with information is urged to call Riverside Det. Ken Madsen at 951/826-8723.
This is the 74 bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the 12th in Riverside County this year; that compares with 12 in the county for all of last year. It’s also the fourth bicycling death in the city of Riverside since the first of the year.
Update: The Press-Enterprise has identified the victim as Riverside resident Ronald Williams.
Update 2: According to the Press-Enterprise, 52-year old Gail Wilkins of Jurupa Valley was cited for misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter and released, after originally being arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of prescription drugs.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for Ronald Williams and his loved ones.
Thanks to Mark Friis and Carlos Morales for the link.
He was taken to Riverside Community Hospital, where he remained on life support for the next two days.
None of the stories describe how the collision happened; however, KTLA-5 reports he was riding in the number two lane. Since Beechwood is just a single lane in each direction, that means he had to have been riding on Magnolia, which suggests that he may have been the victim of a rear-end collision.
A ghost bike was installed in Sutherland’s honor on Wednesday. As Mark Friis, Executive Director of the Inland Empire Biking Alliance observed, there have been too damn many of them required in the Inland area this year.
Police are looking for a silver or beige SUV, similar to a Ford Flex, with major damage to the windshield and front end.
Anyone with information is urge to call Detective Felix Soria at 951/826-8720 or email FSoria@riversideca.gov.
This is the 59th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the 11th in Riverside County, which compares with 12 for all of last year. Sutherland is also the 11th bicycling bike rider to lose his life in a hit-and-run since the first of the year.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for D’Andre Sutherland and all his family.
The victim, who has not been publicly identified pending notification of next of kin, was transported to a nearby hospital where he was pronounced dead at 11:30 pm.
While the article makes no mention of which way the victim was riding, Doolittle does not cross Van Buren, so he could only have been riding east. No explanation is given for why he was attempting to cross the road; however, he may have been trying to reach the bike lane on the northbound side and wasn’t able to get across the the six-lane boulevard in time.
A street view shows a 55 mph speed limit north of Arlington. Whether the driver may have been speeding or the victim simply misjudged his ability to cross before oncoming traffic caught up to is yet to be determined.
This is the 39th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the eighth already this year in Riverside County, compared to just two this time last year.
My prayers and deepest sympathy for the victim and his loved ones.
