The victim, who has not been publicly identified, was taken to a local hospital where he died from his injuries.
According to the police, he was apparently riding in the bike lane when he hit some unidentified object, and was thrown from his bike.
The article stresses that no other vehicle was involved.
However, without identifying the object he allegedly struck, it’s also possible that the victim could have been sideswiped by a passing driver, or fallen in an attempt to avoid one.
There’s also no word on whether the victim was wearing a helmet, which might have helped in this situation, depending on the speed he was riding. Or it might have been of no use, since they don’t specify what injuries he suffered.
Hopefully we’ll learn more later.
Anyone with information is urged contact Traffic Investigator Keith Phan at 562/799-4100 ext. 1625, or email kphan@sealbeachca.gov.
This is at least the 45th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the eleventh that I’m aware of in Orange County, which is having a very bad year.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for the victim and his loved ones.
Our anonymous correspondent reports two more victims in the ongoing war on bikes.
As if we all didn’t have enough to worry about.
Sunday afternoon in Seal Beach, two cyclists got nailed by fishing line pulled across the river path.
One of them was my landlord, who suffered an abrasion across his cheek and a busted knee when he slammed down onto the embankment. A cyclist who stopped to help him said the same thing had just happened to him about 15 minutes prior. This happened in view of a homeless encampment.
I’ll get more info when I get home in the morning (I’m “essential,” lol). My landlord is okay, no concussion or anything, but his wife and I are nagging him to report it. Again, I’ll have more details in the morning, and hopefully confirmation that it’s been reported.
Yes, attacks like this can and should be reported to the police.
It’s not just a prank. It’s an assault a deadly weapon, which can result in serious injury — or worse — to an unsuspecting victim.
And should be treated like the serious crime it is.
Ventura County officials are reviving efforts to build a five-mile rail-to-trail bike path through the farmlands leading to Santa Paula; farmers have successfully halted it in the past by claiming bike riders and their pets will pee on crops and could be harmed by pesticides.
Bicycling manufacturers throughout the US are switching gears to make face masks and other medical gear to fight coronavirus. Which means it might be harder to find your next bike shorts or gloves, but you’ll be more likely to still be here to use them.
A writer for Gear Patrol says daytime running lights could save your life. Anecdotally, I noticed a drop in dangerous passing and angry drivers after I started using extra bright daytime lights a few years ago.
Last Friday, I had a very pleasant talk with Communications Director Dana Variano and new Executive Director Eli Akira Kaufman of the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition, aka LACBC.
I won’t go into details, since everything we discussed was off the record. But we had a very frank and open discussion about the state of bicycling in general, and the state of the LACBC in general.
Suffice it to say that Kaufman recognizes that he’s got a steep learning curve to get a firm grasp on LA bike culture and street safety.
And he’s well aware of the problems facing the LACBC after drifting far too long without effective leadership.
But he’s committed to listening and improving communications, which has been a major problem as long as I’ve been involved with the coalition, as a member and former board member.
And to making the hard decisions the LACBC will need to return to being an effective voice for LA bicyclists.
I left the meeting feeling like the LACBC is in good hands.
And with a little hope for the first time in a long time.
………
Disappointing news from Seal Beach, where Eric Dalton reports the ghost bike for Paul Smith has already been removed, less than three weeks after he was killed.
“In this study of a case series, 249 patients presented to the emergency department with injuries associated with electric scooter use during a 1-year period, with 10.8% of patients younger than 18 years,” says the January 25 paper by Tarak K. Trivedi, Charles Liu, and Anna Liza M. Antonio.
“The most common injuries were fractures (31.7%), head injuries (40.2%), and soft-tissue injuries (27.7%).”
“Only 10 riders were documented as wearing a helmet, constituting 4.4% of all riders,” the report notes. “Twelve patients (4.8%) had physician-documented intoxication or a blood alcohol level greater than 0.05%
Not all of the injured patients had been riding scooters. Eleven had been hit by scooters, and five had tried to lift scooters. Another five had simply tripped over parked scooters, which is what can happen when there are Bird or Lime droppings on the sidewalk.
In other words, despite the panicked response to this study in the media, over 90% of the injuries were to the people riding them. So just like with bicyclists, even the most careless riders are a danger primarily to themselves.
Just wait until the study authors discover how many people get hurt by cars every day.
Which is not to say everyone shouldn’t ride safely, so they don’t pose a risk to themselves or anyone else.
And for chrissakes, don’t leave your damn scooter on the sidewalk, or anywhere else it can pose a danger to anyone.
Or the Japanese man who got a well-deserved 18 years for the road rage death of a motorbike rider, intentionally slamming into him after briefly chasing his bike. Thanks to Norm Bradwell for the link.
If you haven’t already, mark your calendar for International Winter Bike to Work Day on February 8th. We should be able to show a good turnout here in Southern California, where Viking Biking means you might have to put fenders on your bike.
Sad news from New Zealand, where a 32-year old elite cyclist is dying of intestinal cancer, saying she should have pushed harder for a diagnosis after suffering from years of stomach pain.
Still waiting for official confirmation, however, I’ve received two credible reports that a bike rider was killed at PCH and Seal Beach Blvd in Seal Beach around 8:12 this morning from people who passed by the crash site.
More information when it becomes available. However, it looks like SoCal’s killer highway has taken yet another life.
If confirmed, this will be at least the third bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the first I’m aware of in Orange County.
Update: Still no official confirmation of the crash. However, I received the following update from Allyson Vought Friday evening.
My friend was at the accident scene just after it occurred. He said the rider was on a black Kestrel road bike and sadly was face down on the roadway — unmoving. The bike had been struck from behind at speed and a vehicle’s windshield was badly damaged.
This is a particularly bad intersection that Strava calls “time the light.” It’s a downhill from a bridge into Seal Beach on PCH that we riders always make speed — while watching for cars that can travel 50 mph plus through the intersection while traveling straight — or speed ahead of riders on a long right hand turn lane that takes you to the 405. Cars often interfere with the riders in making this turn and all of us have had to dodge, slow or slam on the brakes all too often here! Important to note that this is a marked bike lane as well. Solo riders are often not seen or just ignored by careless drivers in too bag a hurry.
Update 2: We finally have official confirmation from the Seal Beach Police Department. However, his name has not been released, despite being well known in the community. Thanks to Nani Luculescu for the heads-up.
I refrained from naming him over the weekend, even as his name became common knowledge, out of respect for his family until he was publicly identified.
The paper reports around 150 people attended a memorial service for Smith on Sunday afternoon, on an unpaved shoulder of the roadway where he was killed. They recalled him as a loving, generous and devout man who was a friend to everyone he met.
In 2016, Ed Ryder prepared a report on Southern California’s deadly coast highway through San Diego, Orange and LA Counties for this site, based on stats from the CHP’s SWITRS crash database.
More details on the closure of the San Gabriel River Bike Trail later this month.
As we noted yesterday, the pathway will be closed from 2nd Street to Marina Drive in Seal Beach from April 23rd to May 4th, between 9 am and 3 pm, Monday through Friday.
In response to an email from Mike Wilkinson, Long Beach Mobility & Healthy Living Programs Officer Michelle Mowery explained LA County is doing a video examination of discharge drains along the lower levee to ensure they’ll work properly during heavy storms.
It will require the closure of the entire San Gabriel River path, since the camera/vacuum truck takes up the entire width of the bike trail.
No detour will be provided, however, because the west bank of the San Gabriel River is in poor condition and not available for use.
………
This is what it looks like to get cut off by a Metro bus while riding in a DTLA bike lane.
Evidently, that small strip of green paint doesn’t work as bus repellant.
And yes, the bike rider has the right-of-way in that situation; driver’s are required to wait until the bike lane is clear before moving into it.
Bus drivers included.
Spring and Main Streets are scheduled to get protected bike lanes in the coming months, which should keep bus drivers from cutting into them like that.
Because nothing else seems to.
………
Today’s common theme is bike tours around the world.
A New Zealand newspaper suggests a series of international bike tours that won’t make you feel like you’re riding in the Tour de France. Seriously, they had me at visiting a Scotch whisky distillery in the Inner Hebrides.
Maybe we should all move to Wilmington. Councilmember Joe Buscaino — one of the few LA city councilmembers willing to fight for bike safety — is calling for a four to five mile cycle track loop connecting the main features in the port area.
CBS News offers a brief report on LA’s pilot program to paint a few streets grey to cool the surface and the surrounding area. Which should make riding more comfortable on hot days if it proves successful.
A Napa paramedic is taking a bike tour across the US while he still can, to promote laws requiring drivers to move over to pass emergency vehicles. He and his partner were hit by a speeding driver high on meth while they were on a call five years ago; doctors tell him he will probably be paralyzed from his injuries in another few years.
No bias here. An appropriately named conservative talk show host goes on an anti-bike rant, asking if cyclists are Seattle’s most selfish commuters, and saying if you don’t like the crappy car-centric conditions, get on a bus.
Bike crashes are down in Austin TX, but like everywhere else, bicyclists still face dangers on the streets. Including one woman who barely survived a crash last year, only to be struck a second time by a hit-and-run driver this week.
A Toronto transportation planner who was seriously injured in a bike crash last year calls for stiffer penalties for drivers who kill or injure vulnerable road users
It looks like a dangerous driver may be off the streets for awhile.
And for once, she didn’t have to kill someone to get the court’s attention. Just nearly kill three people in an allegedly intoxicated state.
I’m told that Juli Ann Brown, the driver who ran down three members of the Long Beach Lightening Velo bike club in a drunken hit-and-run on PCH last year, was sentenced on Friday to a total of one year in county jail, 15 years in state prison, plus fines, restitution and an 18-month alcohol offender program.
Yes, you read that right.
A total of 16 years, though what that will mean in real life remains to be seen, as she was convicted of multiple counts, and some or all of those terms may end up being served concurrently.
Brown was convicted of plowing into a group of cyclists riding in the bike lane on PCH in Seal Beach in February 2012, then fleeing the scene. Three of the riders were hospitalized with moderate to severe injuries.
Brown was arrested shortly afterwards when Huntington Beach police officers observed her damaged car swerving repeatedly, and booked on suspicion of hit-and-run, driving under the influence and possession of narcotics.
All before 10 am on a Saturday.
This is her second conviction for a DUI offense. Brown was convicted on two separate DUI counts in 2003, one for drug use and another for a blood alcohol level greater than .08. Amazingly, she was sentenced to just 10 days in jail — which as then stayed — and just 90 days of driving restriction, as well as a nine month alcohol treatment program.
This time, at least, she should do some serious jail time.
Whether it will be enough to keep her sober and off the streets once she gets out, only time will tell.
I’ve just received a first-hand report about a Long Beach attempted hit-and-run that left two riders injured — possibly seriously — on Saturday.
The writer, who prefers to remain anonymous, reports that he was riding on PCH, waiting at a red light between Sunset Beach and Seal Beach, when passing motorists called out to him to stop an elderly driver who had just hit two cyclists riding 100 feet apart.
He says the driver waived his handicapped parking placard at him as if to say he had a free pass, and claimed he didn’t know he’d hit anyone. Even though he reportedly later told police investigators that both riders were out in the middle of the road and he couldn’t avoid them — despite what the writer describes as a 10-foot wide bike lane in that area.
According to my source, the police seemed to be buying that explanation — which he described as total BS, and which was contradicted by his earlier statement that he didn’t know he hit anyone. However, it’s always possible the officer was playing along to get more information from the driver.
He indicates that one of the victims was in bad shape with what he described as a nasty head injury, and that the other, who appeared to be a member of local riding club Velo Allegro, had suffered a hip injury.
If you have any more information on the collision or the condition of the riders, let me know.
Update: I’ve just been forwarded word from Velo Allegro that their rider suffered road rash, while the injuries to the other rider are not life threatening. According to them, the 85-year old driver was arrested by Seal Beach police, apparently on site.
Update 2: Carey left the following comment to this post, including contact information for the Seal Beach police.
A good friend of mine was one of the cyclists injured in the crash. I have since spoken with the officer investigating the case and he would like to hear from anyone who saw anything, including what happened after the driver fled the scene. Please contact the Seal Beach Police Department at (562) 799-4100 and any officer would be able to help you. Let’s try and help make the road safe for all cyclists.
If you have any information, please call them right away so we can get this driver off the road.
Over the weekend, I heard numerous reports of a bad hit-and-run collision on PCH in the Seal Beach area Saturday morning.
It wasn’t until Sunday night, though, that I received an email from a member of Long Beach’s Lightning Velo bike club confirming that three cyclists participating in the club’s Saturday Social Ride had been sent to the hospital with moderate to serious injuries.
Fortunately, none were life-threatening, and the driver was quickly apprehended; I’m told this was her 2nd DUI offense.
From the reports on our email group – Our ‘C’ group (the slower group) was on Pacific Coast Highway on Saturday, in Seal Beach, near the Taco Surf going into Sunset Beach. The bike lane is very wide there and our group was riding 2 wide completely in the bike lane. A driver swerved into the bike lane and hit several riders and then swerved back to the left and drove away from the scene. The group got a good description of the car and also had the side mirror in their possession. They reported it to the Seal Beach police, who spread the word and the Huntington Beach police were able to locate the car. The police went back and got two of our riders to identify the vehicle. The driver failed a sobriety test (This was before 10AM!).
One of the cyclists involved stated today: “The Seal Beach police officer, Joe Garcia, is going to bring me my bike today, which is supposed to be in pretty bad shape. The officer stated that the driver was not only drunk, but she had cocaine and prescription meds in her car to go along with her two felony warrants and the hit and run. The case # is: 12-0246, in case anyone would like it.”
Three of our riders went to the hospital and two stayed overnight. One reportedly had elbow surgery for a bad break. Another has a severe bruises & road rash all over, sprained elbow & ankle, neck & head trauma, and a concussion. The 3rd has a broken right thumb, hairline fracture of the pelvis, a large hematoma on his right hip, road rash, pain in his neck & back. All in all, they are VERY lucky to be alive.
We are discussing as a club how we can take our concerns to the justice system. This person should be taken off the roads.
It’s long been my belief that every hit-and-run driver should automatically lose their driver’s license — not suspended, but permanently revoked, since they’ve shown themselves unfit to be behind the wheel by failing to observe one of the most basic legal requirements for any driver.
Or any human being, for that matter.
I think any car used in a hit-and-run should be impounded as evidence until a trial is held. If the driver is convicted, the vehicle should be seized by the state and sold, with the proceeds going to the victim.
After all, we don’t let bank robbers keep the gun they used to commit the crime. And California law already allows seizure of a vehicle if it’s used in a drug crime or to solicit a prostitute.
Isn’t a hit-and-run that leaves an innocent person bloodied or dead in the street just a little more serious than asking a hooker for a blow job?
My prayers and best wishes go out to all the cyclists injured in this case; it was a large hematoma that laid me up for three months after the Infamous Beachfront Bee Encounter, and it was at least that long before my head finally cleared from the effects of the concussion I suffered.
So I know just how serious those injuries can be.
And I wouldn’t wish road rash on my worst enemy.
Update: An anonymous source identifies the driver as Juli Ann Brown. Brown reportedly was convicted of two separate DUI counts in 2003, one for drug use and another for a blood alcohol level greater than .08. In a sign of just how lenient the courts are in what should be a serious crime, she was sentenced to just 10 days in jail — which as then stayed — 90 days of driving restriction, and fines and restitution. In addition, she was required to attend a nine month alcohol treatment program and a MADD victim impact panel.
In other words, not one day in jail. And she had her license back in just three months.
No wonder people continue to die when the courts refuse to get drunks off the road.
The Seal Beach Police Department is looking for more witnesses; contact Officer Joe Garcia directly at (562) 799-4100, ext. 1649
Update: The Orange County Register reports that Brown, a 46-year old resident of Anchorage, Alaska, has been arrested on suspicion of hit-and-run, suspicion of driving under the influence and possession of narcotics. She was arrested by Huntington Beach police near the intersection of PCH and 17th Street in Huntington Beach. Thanks to Duan Dao for the link.
……..
In related news, a Palm Desert cyclist was sent to the hospital in critical condition after a collision at Portola Avenue and Frank Sinatra Drive at 11:18 Sunday morning; no other information is available at this time. Also, a San Diego cyclist suffered a serious arm injury when he was hit by an 85-year old driver in a left cross around 1:20 pm Saturday.
And I’ve received an unconfirmed report — from a very reliable source — about a cyclist struck by a hit-and-run around 6 am Friday in Laguna Beach; let me know if you have any information.
I should say, Mr Penning, I am also a motorist – or at least I was before I was seriously disabled by that tanker. And I can tell you that, as a motorist in London, the thing I’m afraid of is other motorists, not cyclists. That is because other motorists can hurt me even when I’m in a car. And when I’m on a bike, they can kill me.
Cyclists, in particular those who commute, are not obscure oddball hobbyists; they are the trailblazers of a transport future whom we should applaud and accommodate.
Then again, by the time you read this, we may finally know the outcome of the Contador clembuterol-tainted meat case. Or not.
Update: In a major shock, Alberto Contado has joined Floyd Landis in being stripped of 2010 Tour de France title, and has been banned for two years. Très surpris!
Frank Peters of cdmCyclist takes a ride up the coast. A San Diego cyclist may never walk again after he was run down by a 76-year old driver who never knew she hit him. Some schmuck fled the scene after running down three girls walking on a Ventura County bike path. Police say 70% of people killed in Petaluma in the last 25 years have died from traffic collisions, and 30% from criminal attacks; evidently, no one ever dies from accidents or other causes in Petaluma.
An anonymous reader sent me the following email this morning.
In case it slipped under your radar, yesterday Fire Captain John D. Hines entered a preliminary plea of not guilty to three of his felony charges in the hit-and-run of of Jeffrey Gordon. A judge then inexplicably denied the prosecutor’s request to increase the bail amount fivefold to $250,000, which incidentally was the amount of the arrest warrant issued on April 26th. Hines has retained a bulldog of an attorney with a great deal of experience in keeping dangerous drivers on the streets.
Hines’ EMT certificate, #E030577, has not been revoked, and probably is not under review.
The writer goes on to note that Hines is scheduled for a preliminary hearing on June 17th.
And yes, it did slide under my radar, even though I’ve been following this case and scan the news for anything bike-related several times a day. So a big thanks for forwarding this information.
When I went back to look again after receiving the email, I found a number of stories like this one in the Contra Costa Times, each containing the same news release, virtually word for word, about Hines arraignment for running down a cyclist, then hitting the gas and fleeing the scene. And adding little to the story beyond what you see above.
Credit then, to the Los Alamitos-Seal Beach Patch, which took the time to dig a little deeper into the story — including noting, as we speculated, that Hines reportedly had checked himself into rehab following his initial arrest.
No doubt at the suggestion of the afore mentioned bulldog attorney, Vince Tucci, in the hopes of getting leniency from the court.
Hines faces a maximum of six years and eight months if convicted on the felony DUi and hit-and-run charges; two hours after the collision, his blood alcohol level was .24, three times the legal limit of .08.
“Instead of staying to render aid, he left the victim like common road kill in a pool of blood, and fled the scene…it is egregious,” Deputy District Attorney Andrew Katz said last week. “It’s 1 in the afternoon, he’s three times the legal limit. He’s a firefighter, no less, someone whose job it is to aid people in medical distress. It’s not some 18-year-old kid who had too much to drink. He knows better. He should know better.”
He’s released on just $50,000 bail, after the request to increase bail to the same $250,000 amount in the arrest warrant was denied.
A moment later, he was sailing 70 feet through the air after being hit from behind by a Chevrolet pickup truck driven by Long Beach fire captain John David Hines.
Rather than stop and render aid as he is trained to do, Hines fled the scene as witnesses chased after him begging him to stop. They followed him to his home in Huntington Beach where he was arrested by the police, who allege that he looked drunk and had a strong odor of urine on his clothes.
“I was sick to my stomach the whole time,” Chisholm recalled. “He just hit him and left him to die like he was a skunk in the road. He had to have known he hit him because his truck was all busted up. That was a human being he left there to die. It’s not right.”
Then again, maybe its a good thing he didn’t try to save Gordon’s life; with a blood alcohol level of .24 percent — virtually the same level as Marco Antonio Valencia showed when he killed Joe Novotny — he probably would have done far more harm than good.
And he’d already done more than enough harm behind the wheel.
Hines reportedly spent the morning drinking at the Schooner or Later bar in Long Beach before driving down to Seal Beach. That’s where he allegedly drifted into the bike lane and struck Gordon’s bike from behind, then sped off without ever hitting his brakes or slowing down.
John David Hines, 38, is charged with one felony count each of driving under the influence of alcohol causing bodily injury, driving with a blood alcohol level of .08% or more causing injury and hit-and-run with injury, according to a release from the district attorney. He also faces sentencing enhancements for causing great bodily injury and having a blood alcohol level over .20%.
Fortunately, Gordon survived the collision, despite spending two weeks in the hospital with severe injuries ranging from head trauma, severe lacerations and bruising to his head and body, to internal injuries and spinal and vertebrae injuries. However, he reportedly continues to suffer limited mobility, and speech and memory loss.
Hines faces up to six years and eight months in prison if convicted. According to the Times, he is still being sought by police on $250,000 bail; it’s possible that he may have entered rehab in an attempt to get leniency from the court.
