Cathy Jean Jones struck a young woman in a crosswalk at Main and Pacific in February 2010, then tried to evade police.

From Danny Jimenez:

At the preliminary hearing on October 12 2010, the judge held there was sufficient evidence for the case to be heard before a jury. After a few continuances and postponements, Cathy Jean Jones pleaded No Contest on July 19th, 2011. Judge James Dabney sentenced her to two days county jail, but given two days credit for time served. She was also ordered to complete 180 days of community service, with permission to perform at a non profit organization approved by the LA County Probation Dept. She was placed on 5 years summary probation and ordered to pay court fines and make full restitution to the victim. Finally, she was ordered NOT to drive a motor vehicle. However, it does not say how long the driving restriction will last.

The restitution hearing is scheduled for January 5, 2012 in Department F at the LAX Courthouse.

In the Jeffrey Ray Adams case, District Attorney Steve Cooley decided to uphold the Misdemeanor charge.

The victim expressed frustration that his situation was not dire enough to merit Felony charges, even after his assault was caught on camera. BikingInLA explains that although the behaviour of the driver was outrageous, he is still not considered dangerous enough to warrant a Felony charge under California law. Rather sad that we have to be dismembered, left in a comatose state, or killed in order to elevate assaults with deadly vehicular weapons to a Felony status.

Tuesday evening, bike boxes on Ocean Park, downtown bikeways, and incorporating bike facilities into the future light rail station locations will be discussed at Santa Monica City Council. From Richard McKinnon, SM Parks and Recreation Comission:

First on the consent calendar is an item approving Alta design to design Santa
Monica’s first Bike Boxes at the Ocean Park Blvd and Main intersection and
at Michigan and Lincoln. The work is funded from a 2007 metro grant.

Second, the Council will consider circulation in the downtown area. In a great
staff, bikes are mentioned right through the document. The discussion will be a
chance to be heard about how bikes will be used in our central downtown
area.

3D rendering of a bike box

Jan is the owner of Boardtown Bikes in her hometown of Starkville. It took over two weeks for the police to file misdemeanor charges against Robbie Norton. Different part of the country, yet very similar situation to our own recent cyclist carnage in Culver City.

Unfortunately, and downright inappropriately, some media outlets chose to use the word “accident” to describe this attempt on Jan’s life. Even though they also have “ran over twice” in the article title.

As usual, reporters felt compelled to mention whether or not she was wearing a helmet.  In an otherwise sensible article, Starkville Daily News alludes to the “wear bright clothing” bit, because that is the imaginary armor that will protect cyclists from insane, bloodthirsty motorists.

Jan was treated for multiple fractures, significant head injuries, collapsed lungs and road rash over most of her body.

“The impact threw her into the air and she landed on the hood of the car. The driver continued for a few feet before stopping when Morgan was thrown to ground.”

Norton exited her vehicle and “observed the cyclist while talking on the phone,” before getting back into her car and running over Morgan again.

Norton had to be forced from her car by witnesses.

Jan Morgan spent four weeks in critical condition at a Tupelo hospital. She has recently started acknowledging human interaction with basic body motions and very simple verbal responses.

The motorist had the nerve to claim that she does not remember getting back in the vehicle and driving over her again as she lay unconscious on the road.

Bike Portland has also picked up on the story. The Morgan family and their friends are hoping to bring this heinous incident to national attention.

David, Jan’s husband, is keeping a daily blog of her slow recovery.

According to District Attorney Forrest Allgood and Clay County Prosecutor Angela Turner-Lairy, there is no law in Mississippi that allows for this case to be upgraded to a felony. As of June 22nd, the attempted murder of Jan Morgan is classified as a misdemeanor. The worst-case scenario for the motorist would be six months in jail and $500 in penalties.

The video above was shot last night at 10:30pm. In the video:

• my top speed driving was 40mph.
• 3 people were holding 4 standard blinky lights for this experiment
• the street light above the crash location was still out

Distances are verified using this map of the crash scene using telephone poles as markers on the road.

Visibility test

The camera was placed in the passenger’s seat which means that the line of sight of the camera is actually not as good as a person sitting in the driver’s seat would have.

You can also see that the blinky lights are spread out from the parking / right turn lane inside the solid line and the number 2 lane (right lane). Had people been in the number one lane the line of sight would have been even clearer.

ongoing investigation and video on the Midnightridazz thread:
http://www.midnightridazz.com/forums.php?topicId=17444

Funky Fridays, in memory of

Since late 2010, Danny Jimenez has been kept us in the loop on the Shawn Fields hit and run case, which ended the life of Danny Marin, a 17-year old Kennedy High School student. Details and recent developments below, as written by Danny Jimenez.

Notes from mid-March Preliminary hearing

Judge Beverly O’Connel ordered that Shawn Patrick Fields will be held to answer at trial for the three felonies he was charged with. This means the judge believed there was sufficient evidence for the case to be heard in front of a jury and go to trial.

According to the arresting officer, Fields volunteered a statement before being taken to the police station that he shouldn’t have driven home because he had too much to drink at a wrap up party at the Roosevelt in Hollywood. The officer that administered the breath test at the station noted that his BAC was .14/.15 at about 4:15 a.m. The collision occurred about three hours earlier.

The investigating officer who interviewed Fields also testified. Fields told him he got to the party around 10pm and drank a long island ice tea, a red label whiskey, a gin and tonic, beer and some water before leaving.

He soon after ate a bacon wrapped hot dog and threw up.   Fields did not remember driving home, but recalled he may have hit something on the way.

After the presentation of the evidence, Field’s defense attorney, Ellory Sorkin, argued that gross vehicular manslaughter was not the appropriate charge based on the evidence.  He argued that all the evidence added up to negligent conduct at most, but not wanton and reckless disregard which is the basis for “gross” vehicular manslaughter charge.

Charges against Shawn Fields

Gross Vehicular Manslaughter carries a minimum 4 year state prison term and maximum 10 year term. Vehicular Manslaughter without gross negligence has a minimum sentence of 1 year in county jail and maximum state prison term of 4 years.

Ultimately the judge did not agree and ordered Fields to answer for the crimes as originally charged. Four felony counts:

• Penal Code 191.5(a) – gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated
• Vehicle Code 23153(a) & (b) – driving under the influence causing injury
• Vehicle Code 20001(a) – hit and run with injury.

On March 30, Fields was arraigned again in the felony trial court, where he entered a plea of Not Guilty to all the counts. On May 11, there was a pretrial hearing, but it was continued to June 22.

He is still out on bail but ordered to return on each of the hearing dates.

Hit & Run is nothing for a lobbyist:

It was natural for Don Ward to endorse Life Before License because he was clobbered in a callous hit and run on Glendale Blvd.  Ward was riding home from the nighttime all-city ride Wolfpack Hustle when big time lobbyist – Managing Director of the Mercury Group in LA – Glenn Gritzner hit him in his Jaguar:

I had the brightest lights money could buy, I was wearing a helmet, and I was riding in a legal, vehicular fashion when a driver plowed into me from behind at an estimated speed of 50 mph. It was 1 AM and the streets were relatively empty. My bike crumpled as it collided with the grill and my body sunk in to the hood of the gray 4 door 2009 Jaguar. I was carried and thrown some 50 feet and then…. left to fend for myself in the middle of the street.  …

Laying face down on the ground, blurry eyed, and in shock I still managed to get most of the plate numbers. Before I even moved I tweeted them on my smashed phone, afraid I would forget the numbers.

Gritzner fled the scene, and turned his Jaguar into the shop, but Ward was able to track him down using the partial plate and visiting high end body shops; Ward, at 6′ 8″, left the Jaguar needing body work after it smashed into him – a smaller rider might have nothing to go on.

Don Ward lies in the street after being hit and run by Glenn Gritzner in his Jaguar

In the end, power counts.  Gritzner never saw the inside of courtroom, his lawyer acting as his surrogate.  It drove the point home to Ward, who is rightfully mad that Gritzner got off easy, that a small first step toward justice is taking away the driving privileges of convicted hit and runners.  That’s the purpose of Life Before License, which asks:

1. A hit and run which results in fatality will result in the loss of driving privileges for 10 years.
2. A hit and run which results in permanent disability, or causes a life threatening injury will result in the loss of driving privileges for 5 years.
3. A hit and run which results in injury, but which does not lead to permanent disability or a life threatening injury, will result in the loss of driving privileges for 2 years.
4. A hit and run which results in the damage of property only will result in the loss of driving privileges for 1 year.

Thanks Don, and thanks Safe Streets Northridge for the endorsement!

Unfortunately, life and the 2010 Bike Plan intervened, and Bikeside has missed the legislative window to alter state law.  So, we may beef this initiative up so that we can get even more through in the next legislative session.

An OG endorsement, and OG support:

For about a year, Josef Bray-Ali and I were each others’ dopplegangers.  Josef founded the Bike Oven, Northeast LA’s version of the Bike Kitchen, out of his garage, and I co-founded the Bikerowave 18 months later, West LA’s version of the Bike Kitchen.  Both Josef and I were original members of Stephen Box’s watershed Bike Writers Collective, and we were in many ways, the angry voices in the wilderness in our respective corners of the city – RANT set to full.  Single men, in full ass kicking mode working against a recalcitrant system – those were the bad old, and the good old, days.

Josef Bray Ali at the opening night of the Bike Oven

I still feel a strong kinship with Josef because we still are cynical hardasses who want change now, not 5 years from now, and certainly not on the 30 year timeline laid out for the LA Bike Plan.  And Bikeside is proud to take pages from the Bray-Ali playbook and engage on complicated issues like LOS, or ADT.

Since Josef became a dad, he started the Flying Pigeon with his brother Adam, a bike shop next to the Bike Oven which sells city bikes of all flavors, including European cargo bikes.  That makes Josef a proud father of three, first, his greatest love – his daughter – and then the Bike Oven and Flying Pigeon.

Instead of stapling together $100 bills to make pants and t-shirts from their profits, or commissioning rocket ship bikes, Josef and Adam have set aside some funds to support organizations kicking butt for cyclists.  They’ve supported CicLAvia and LA Streetsblog, and today, they’ve pledged their support for Bikeside! We’re proud to have it, and it’s a mutual thing – we love Flying Pigeon and we love Josef’s fire, so we’ll be running ads for Flying Pigeon and, as always, seeking the Bray-Ali point of view to inform our efforts.

Cheers!

[edited to alter comments re Glenn Gritzner per Don Ward's request]

The hit and run victim, Brittany Norton

Cathy Jean Jones, 41, of Malibu, struck 28-year old Britanny Norton on the evening of February 1st in a crosswalk on Main Street in Santa Monica, leaving her with severe head trauma, multiple facial fractures, and broken ribs.  Cathy Jones’ van was allegedly traveling at 40mph at the time (the speed limit on Main St is 30mph) as she attempted to “pass a slower moving vehicle by using the bicycle/parking lane“. According to an off-duty firefighter who witnessed the collision, “Brittany Norton (was) spinning in the air after she was struck“.

Jones stopped for a few seconds, then decided to take off, erratically driving down side streets to get away from the scene of the crime.  The off-duty firefighter chased her down and luckily got the license plate, then later identified the culprit once police officers apprehended her in a nearby grocery store parking lot.

Cathy Jean Jones charged with Failure to Stop at the Scene of a Collision (VC 20001A)

Jones was charged with leaving the scene of an “accident” aka Hit and Run.

Quick recap of the case:

• March 5th – Jones enters not guilty plea to Felony Hit and Run with Injury charge
• Oct 12 – Judge Mader decides there is sufficient evidence to hold Jones to answer before a jury after hearing from two witnesses (including the off-duty firefighter) and the victim
• Oct 26 – Jones re-arraigned, pleads not guilty again

Another interesting fact about Jones is that she was booked on a few other charges on 10/10/2010 (the same date as CicLAvia) for assault and battery on police officer, resisting arrest, and failure to disperse from unlawful assembly. This was two days before she pleaded not guilty to the hit and run.

The next pre-trial hearing for Cathy Jean Jones is on Jan 6 2011, Dept. F, at the LAX Courthouse (11701 South La Cienega Bl, LA, CA 90045).

Yelena Krupen

Yelena Krupen, the person who hit the esteemed Brandon Chau in Beverly Hills last year and then took off, has been sentenced to 25 days in county jail, $1500 fine ($350 of which is restitution to the victim), and 2 years of summary probation. The chance is that she won’t actually serve 25 days, but I’m curious to see what folks think of the punishment. Some may even say it’s too harsh, but then again, I hear she has a baaaad driving record…

I always think I was born to live for love. The love is for the man I love. I could give up everything just for the man I love. That’s why I gave up my tenure full professorship at Osaka Sangyo University in order to live with my dear Jim in Los Angeles. My relatives and friends couldn’t understand me. They thought I was crazy. At Pierce College when I teach my first class of economics for each semester, I would always tell  my  students about how a happy economist like me makes her decisions.

An economist makes decisions based on benefits and costs, while a non-economist is based on either benefits or cost. I quit my tenure full professorship at Osaka Sangyo University with a six figure income ( I gave them an assumptive $130,000). Well, this is on the cost side. I will tell them I only teach part-time at Pierce College.

I gave them an assumptive number of $40,000. Then I would ask them “Do you think I’m crazy?” They would nod their heads. I said “well, if I’m really crazy, then I shouldn’t  be standing here teaching you.” I told them “besides my salary, my benefits include wonderful  friends, wonderful students like you guys (they would smile with satisfaction), beautiful blue sky and puffy clouds, and my beloved dear husband. Now can you give me a number about the benefits? “  Some would say $140,000, some would say $200,000….I told them my answer is ∞ (infinity), because the benefits cannot be measured by any numerical numbers.  I would then ask them “now do you still think I’m crazy?” They would shake their heads. So my students know how happy I was and how much I love my dear husband.

Jim and I have been super happily married for 13 years. My friends all know we are the two happiest loving birds on earth. On October 23, 2010, our perfect loving life was destroyed at 3:45 p.m. Saturday when my 46-year-old dearest husband was hit by a drunken driver as he was pedaling along Agoura Road. In the morning of that day, I was going to a once-in-a-year event with my friends.

When I left home, my dear Jim came out of the house to see me off as he would always do. He kissed me on the cheeks and said “ Have a good time, baby (I love to be called baby by him) ! Today I’m going to have a long ride. So please don’t worry about me if I am not at home when you come back.” As my red car was rolling down the driveway, he waved his hands, watching me with loving smile on his face until I could no longer see him any more. Who on earth would know that was my last look at my dearest Jim!

From the bottom of my heart, I didn’t want him to do cycling. But he loved cycling so much and I had to respect him. That day, I didn’t see him off. Usually, I see him off and offer a blessing – a prayer that says please come home safe.

I love this man so much. He is the most wonderful man in the world. A wonderful husband. A wonderful son. A wonderful brother.

When I rushed back home from the event, I didn’t see Jim. But I remembered what he had said to me when I left. So I didn’t feel too bad. I even called my friend Louise about how wonderful the event was. I met many famous artists and I almost got to buy one beautiful painting which I saw how it was finished before me by a great artist. Unfortunately that one was bought while I was wondering from one artist’s stand to another. I was so excited about the event and couldn’t wait to tell Jim in every detail about it.

I prepared Jim’s favorite chicken dish for dinner and waited for him to return.  I became increasingly worried as it got dark. I tried his cell phone, but the call didn’t go through.  I called Jim’s mother.  She was worried and asked me to call her immediately if Jim came back.

Then came the call from a CHP officer.  She said, “Are you Jim Laing’s friend?”  I replied in an anxious voice,“No, this is Jim’s wife! What happened to my husband?”  She told me calmly, “I’m sorry. Your husband didn’t survive.”  I simply couldn’t believe my ears, as if I was hit by a sudden lightening on a sunny day.  I started screaming “Oh,no! No! No!Jim! Jim! Jim! Please don’t go! I love you so much!…”

My hands were trembling, my heart seemed to stop beating, and things were getting blurry with hundreds of little stars jumping in front of my eyes.  The officer was still talking, but I couldn’t hear a word. I told her I had to hang up.  She asked me not to do that, because she wanted to know my address. I told her the address and I dropped the phone in total despair. I dialed the number to Jim’s Mother and told her about the catastrophic news.  She burst into tears instantly and told me she would come to me right away…

I then called my friend Nelson, a retired colonel from Taiwan.  Immediately my living room was full of friends trying to save me from this catastrophic disaster hitting my body and soul so hard that I felt I was going to die.  I screamed, screamed and screamed.  My friends didn’t know what to do about me.  Nobody could stop me. In my utter sorrow, I called my dear parents in Beijing.  My mother on the other side was calling my name, “Xiao Qun! Xiao Qun! You cannot die. If you die, I’ll die,too!”

I’m the baby of my family with two elder sisters and on elder brother who always love me and took good care of me during my childhood.  I’m my parents’, especially mother’s favorite.  I always know how to make her happy, and I always feel very happy for the fact that I’m able to do that.  Even now I would call my parents every other day.  Each time when I am on the phone, we seem to have endless topics to talk about.  My parents know every detail about my life here.  After about 4 hours’ screaming, I suddenly stopped, and I asked my friends to be quiet.  Even though he was away from me physically,  I felt him in my heart.  And I heard him tell me”`Baby, be strong, I love you! I’ll be waiting for you!”

I have to be strong for my beloved Jim.  I’ve been busy doing things that I’m sure Jim would love me to do.  I went back to teach at Pierce College three days after the terrible accident.  After they found out what happened to me three days ago, my students cried. One of the students came up to the front to give me a hug.  I could see those lovely young lives grow a lot within just one class time – 1 hour 25 minutes.  That day I taught three classes.  I want to touch more lives and I want to show those who have lost their beloved ones that the best way to express our sorrow is to be strong and carry on with a meaningful life which leads to a wider world full of friendship and love.

I have so much to do for Jim. I’m arranging for the Memorial Service for Jim which is scheduled to be on November 20 (Saturday).  I’m waiting for the answer from Pierce College (my workplace) and California Lutheran University (Jim’s workplace).  Today I’m going to meet Jim’s students at CLU.  My college is going to interview me on November 8.  I was invited to give an on-air talk about Jim on KPC on November 17.

I’ve already recorded 18 hours of contents for a book which will be written both in English and Chinese.  As my friends know, I was a person who just cared about my private life with my loving husband Jim, for whom I quit my six-figure income tenured full professorship/Ph.D supervisor position at Osaka Sangyo University (I was known as Luqun there) in Japan.  When I was in Japan, NHK (Japanese government television) invited me to participate in a TV program called “Successful Foreign Women in Japan”.  I declined without hesitation, because I didn’t want to be famous at all. However, now I was pushed to the front by Jim’s sudden death.  My dearest Jim will not die in vain.

I love you, Jim! And I miss you, Jim!

Ghost bike in London

At 9:14am, Judge Greenthal calls up Shawn Fields.  His private counsel was not present at the time, so his case was put on hold for another twenty minutes.

Once the defense attorney returned, it was time for Shawn Fields to plead.  “Not Guilty”.

The defense asked for a preliminary hearing, in
a different court.  Judge moved it to Department (Courtroom) C, on the 2nd floor of the San Fernando Courthouse.  Next court date is Dec 7th, and will most likely be presided by Judge Lyons.

The defense attorney asked that the friends and members of the Marin family abstain from contact with the Fields family while inside the courthouse.  He also briefly mentioned something about a mean-spirited internet posting about Shawn, but did not place blame on a specific individual.

The judge responded that he has no control over what happens on the internet.  However, while inside the courtroom, he asked that present family members are to avoid contact with one another.  Indeed, the bailiff approached the Fields family and ensured that the Marin family had left before escorting them out.

Previous Update:

http://www.bikesidela.org/danny-marin-shawn-fields-hit-and-run-case-courtroom-update-1/

Lulu Laing, widow of James Laing (photo by Hans Gutknecht, Daily News)

Last Saturday, James Laing went out for a ride.  S.D. Whitmansegal, aka Stephanie Segal, 44, of Woodland Hills, is the sole reason why he never made it back home to his wife.  The rest of the heartbreaking story is in the Daily News.

She was driving drunk, and it was a hit and run.  Does that sound familiar yet?

According to Danny Jimenez’s (DJ Wheels) comment on BikingInLA , she posted bail at 2:30am later that same day.  So she’s free to walk for now.  According to the LASD Inmate Locator (search for Segal, Stephanie), she was booked by CHP, and released after 5 hours; court date has not been set.

Sometimes I will be writing unbiased articles that state the facts.  This is not one of those articles.

What the fuck is going on here?  Isn’t a civilized society supposed to protect its people?  Aren’t we all tired of seeing ignorant comments about “why was he even in the street in the first place”?

If you ride a bike and you think you’re safe, you’re not.  It can happen to any of us, no matter what streets or precautions  we take.

So start getting involved because we’re all an endangered species in this ass-backwards place known as Southern California.

RIP-Daniel-Marin aka Deftor818 (Facebook photo)

This morning, Shawn Fields, the motorist who stands accused of Daniel Marin’s death had his first courtroom encounter with Judge Lloyd M. Nash.  Shawn Fields’ defense was handled by private counsel Sorkin.  The atmosphere was fairly tense, with Danny’s parents, uncle and sisters in attendance, as well as some of Shawn’s family.

Most of the today’s cases dealt with common traffic infractions such as driving without a license or while uninsured.  The judge assured all of those present that this batch of cases would be handled in about 10 minutes, then he proceeded with the most heinous crime, the DUI hit-and-run which took Danny’s life.  Just to clarify, these are the charges brought against 26-year old Shawn Fields:

• 191.5(A) PC – Gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated; technically, this should result in jailtime
• 23153 (A) VC – Driving Under Influence of Alcohol or Drugs
• 23153 (B) VC  - DUI Causing Injury
• 20001 (A) VC – Failure to Stop at Scene of Accident

As soon as Shawn Fields stepped up to the front of the courtroom, Judge Nash stated that bail should have been automatically at least 150K (not 100K) due to the manslaughter charge, and ordered to bailiff to handcuff Shawn and place him in a holding cell adjacent to the courtroom.

The defense lawyer (Sorkin) stressed that Shawn Fields had no previous record.  Judge responded it will be hard to defend Shawn since the car had a shattered windshield, so he was either too drunk to realize that he hit someone, or he knowingly took off.  Failure to obey Vehicle Code section 20001 (A), stopping at the scene of a collision involving injury or death, is more commonly known as a Hit and Run.  The defense lawyer agreed that the visibly damaged windshield will be a problem for him to explain to a jury, if the case gets to that point.

Judge Nash said this case will require a “custodial sentence” -  mandatory jail or prison time, due to the Gross Vehicular Manslaughter charge. He also mentioned possible remittance to the victim’s family.

According to the LASD Inmate Info website, Shawn’s family posted the remainder of the bail amount (10% of 50K = $5,000) by 3pm this afternoon, so he was in custody for just over 5 hours.

Next hearing is Nov 4th, same courtroom (courtroom S).  The exact time has not been posted yet.

If you’d like to attend, the easiest way up (other than a chopper, plane or car), is to take the Red Line to NoHo, then ride up Tujunga to Glenoaks, or Chandler to Woodman (perceived safest route).   If you have a better suggestion, please do post it in the comments.  It’s a lonely ride, so bring a friend.

I received this bad news this morning from City of LA Bicycle Advisory Committee Chairman Glenn Bailey:

Advisory Message has been issued by the LAPD Headquarters.

Tuesday October 19, 2010 10:31 PM PDT

Valley Teen Killed in Hit and Run Collision

October 19, 2010, Los Angeles:  Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), Valley Traffic Division Detectives are investigating a fatal hit and run collision that claimed the life of a 16-year-old Valley student from Sherman Oaks.

On October 19, 2010, at approximately 3:30 p.m. Conor Lynch was attempting to jog across Woodman Avenue, midblock north of Riverside Drive and south of Addison Street, when he was hit by a burgundy 2005 Hyundai Santa Fe SUV travelling northbound.  The driver of the SUV, Moran Biton, 18-years of age from Sherman Oaks, failed to stop after the collision and continued driving northbound for several blocks before being detained by LAPD officers.

Lynch was pronounced dead at scene.  Biton was taken into custody and booked into Van Nuys jail for Felony Hit and Run.  She is being held on $50,000 bail.  The investigation is ongoing, but drugs and alcohol do not appear to have been a factor.

Anyone who may have witnessed the collision or has information regarding it is asked to call LAPD Valley Traffic Detectives, Detective II Chris Laurino,  (818) 644-8115, or Detective III William Bustos at
(818) 644-8021. During non-business hours or on weekends, calls may be directed to 1-877-LAPD-24-7.  Anyone wishing to remain anonymous may call Crimestoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (800-222-8477).  Tipsters may also contact Crimestoppers by texting to phone number 274637 (C-R-I-M-E-S on most keypads) using a cell phone.  All text messages should begin with the letters “LAPD.”  Tipsters can also go to LAPDOnline.org, click on “webtips” and follow the prompts.
Check the LA Times article for updates.

While the youngsters were lining up out in front of United Threads, Daniel’s extended family was keeping busy preparing hot dogs in the rear parking lot. The owner of Cupid’s brought in some delicious chili. The helpful folks at Pedaler’s West dished out some last minute bike checkups and made sure young and old alike had enough air in their tires to keep them afloat.

As the sun set, there was a BMX trick show-off,

… followed by a bunny hop contest.

Fifty or so riders, along with 3-4 cars as escort headed out west on Mission Bl, up to Riverside, continued west to Reseda, then south to Devonshire and back east towards the intersection where Danny was killed. It was nice to see parents riding along with their children, bringing some life to these otherwise empty, wide streets. Some motorists honked in support as they drove past. Passerbys inquired about the ride’s purpose.

I cut out about one third of the way through to head back to the NoHo Red Line station, while the rest of the group made their way to the improptu memorial at Laurel Canyon and Chamberlain St.

Altar near Chamberlain and Laurel Canyon (Photo courtesty of San Fernando Sun)

Some of Danny’s friends recognized that the intersection is a dangerous one, with the northbound lane on Laurel Canyon leaving a cyclist with very little room to maneuver, between the car traffic and the curb. This is also clearly visible in the above photo. In this case, Danny would have to have taken full control of the lane, and the intoxicated Shawn Fields plowed straight into him, sending him flying across Chamberlain St.

But I’m sure all those gory details will be discussed during the court case. First hearing will be on Oct 27th at San Fernando Courthouse, 900 Third St at 8:30am.

In the meantime, why not use common sense and change what’s obviously wrong here. Why do we have such lax laws against drunk driving? Why was there absolutely no on-street cycling infrastructure at that intersection? Could Danny be alive today if the speed limits in the Valley were lower? What can we do to make streets safe for people again and make southern California more livable?

It’s nice that his legacy is carried forward by those he shared a common interest and friendship with. I just wish I didn’t have to use words like “legacy” and “carried forward”.

Gary Kavanagh's excellent logo design

That’s why Bikeside is heading to Sacramento to change California law.  We think it’s time to restore the principle that life should come before license.  With the campaign Life Before License we will take convicted hit and run drivers of the road, and in doing so send a clear message that being convicted of hit and run will be more than an inconvenience.  We propose that California law be changed so that once convicted of hit and run, a motorist loses their driving privilege.  Further, we propose that the loss of driving privileges be tied to the outcome of the hit and run, according to the following:

• A hit and run which results in fatality will result in the loss of driving privileges for 10 years.
• A hit and run which results in permanent disability, or causes a life threatening injury will result in the loss of driving privileges for 5 years.
• A hit and run which results in injury, but which does not lead to permanent disability or a life threatening injury, will result in the loss of driving privileges for 2 years.
• A hit and run which results in the damage of property only will result in the loss of driving privileges for 1 year.

How you can help:

In order to make it through the legislative process in Sacramento we’re going to need a number of things, but most of all, political clout.  We’ll need to forge a statewide alliance of groups who support Life Before License to fend off any opposition.

If you can secure an endorsement from a non-profit, a business, local goverment, a politician or other significant figure, that helps immensely.  Drop us a line – contact@BikesideLA.org

If you can even get the process started, that helps too.  Plus, if you let us know that you support the campaign and your zip code, then if we need letters of support sent to a specific legislator when the time comes, we can contact you.

Just as important, law can only make so much difference.  Ultimately we have a problem with hit and run because it’s become culturally acceptable, or at least it’s not as culturally unacceptable as it once was.  Campaigning to change state law is also an opportunity to change minds.  If this issue is important to you, bring it up with those close to you.  If you like, send them to our Life Before License survey as a conversation starter.  Who knows, they may be able to help at the political level!

Finally, for those in the LA area who really want to do some heavy lifting, we’ll have an organizing meeting this coming Sunday, 10/17, at the Hollywood Adventist Church at 1711 N. Van Ness Ave from 1pm to 3pm. Please come!  I think we have a winning campaign on our hands here, so join us on the ground floor on our way to the penthouse (of safe streets.)

A change in stats:

You may have heard us quote that statistic that 38% of all collisions in LA are hit and run (in 2008.)  We got that stat from an LAPD report in February.  However, in that report LAPD used stats only for collisions which they took the report for.  It turns out that in about 1/3 of the collisions in LA, some law enforcement agency other than LAPD takes the report; most often CHP takes a report for a collision on the highway.

Adding those collisions changes the statistic, and since it’s a more robust statistic with all collisions included, from now on we’ll be using that larger dataset.

So if, when you read then introduction to this post, you thought “didn’t they say 38% of collisions in LA are hit and run, not 32%”, then that’s why.  The correct statistic is 32% once you add in the missing data.

Stay tuned:

As time allows we’ll post additional info about Life Before License, such as why this campaign and not another, in depth reports on hit and run statistics, in depth reports on those hit and run cases we’re able to follow, and an explanation of why we chose the particular loss of driving privilege times that we did.

As always, if you want to get involve, contact us at contact@BikesideLA.org

A Los Angeles police officer was convicted Thursday of leaving the scene of an accident and causing great bodily injury in a June 2008 hit-and-run in which his Hummer struck two pedestrians in a Saugus parking lot.

After 2 1/2 days of deliberation, a jury at the Norwalk courthouse convicted William J. Skett, 36, of the felony, and he faces up to six years in prison at his Jan. 13 sentencing. Skett, while still an officer, is presently on leave.

Prosecutors sought two other charges but the jury did not convict on those:

Jurors, however, hung on a charge of driving under the influence causing injury. Skett was acquitted of a third felony count, driving with a 0.08% blood-alcohol level.

Visit the LA Times for full details.

In the decade spanning 1999 and 2008, 32% of all collisions were hit and run in Los Angeles.  8.1% of collisions in that decade were felony hit and run, meaning someone was seriously injured.

The hit and run survey has been getting a lot of action and we’re up to 230 responses!  Thanks to everyone who took five minutes to run the 5 question gauntlet.  A special shout out to Chris Kostman of AdventureCORPS, who tweeted and promoted the survey.  I’ve run into Chris here and there over the years, and the things that he and other members do in the name of adventure define epic – check out the Furnace Creek 508 for example.  Rach Stevenson, Kay, and Gary Kavanagh – Life Before License team members – deserve some recognition for doing great outreach the last two weeks for Life Before License.

I hope you’ll join us Sunday, even if it is short notice:

Life Before License organizing meeting
Sunday, September 12th, 1pm – 3pm
Seventh Day Adventist Church of Hollywood
1711 N. Van Ness Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90028

*classroom – enter parking lot and look for bikes!*

http://bit.ly/LB4Lsurv

Share it on your twitter account, share it on Facebook, and ask your friends, family, and community to take the survey.  This survey will get them thinking about hit and run, driving privileges, and what should come first – life or license?  We have to change the law for 37 million Californians . . . we better get started now!

Life Before License had it’s first organizing meeting last Sunday, the 15th, in Hollywood.  Activists of all stripes came together and we discussed means and plans of attack for addressing hit and run.  The free ranging discussion led to a consensus position – the laws that govern our streets, from top to bottom, must be reformed.  Life Before License, therefore, is our first step on a tough journey of comprehensive reform.

We left with a plan to build a broad coalition of all road users and a commitment to changing hearts and minds.  The first step toward change is understanding the lay of the land.

If you want to go a step further and get involved, we’ll be holding our 2nd Life Before License organizing meeting this Sunday, 8/29:

Life Before License Organizing Meeting
Hollywood Adventist Church - classroom
1711 North Van Ness Avenue
Hollywood, CA 90028

Or contact Bikeside via email at contact@bikesidela.org

You can RSVP via Facebook or Twtvite!

Life Before License gets rolling from 1pm-3pm on Sunday, August 15th in Hollywood

Bikeside will be hosting a meeting (RSVP on Facebook, Twitter) this Sunday, August 15th, from 1pm till 3pm, to get organized for our Life Before License campaign.  The Life Before License campaign is Bikeside’s campaign to change state law so that hit and run drivers have their license revoked; it is part of Bikeside’s larger StreetLife initiative.

This meeting is for anyone who wants to participate and support the campaign.  We’ll talk about strategy, connecting with supporters, and talking points.  We may even do some role playing.  We’ll also start to work out some other areas of responsibility, such as legislative support, graphic design and relating to media.

The meeting is from 1pm to 3pm at the Hollywood Adventist Church in Hollywood.  We’ll be in a classroom, and I’ll post signs to direct you inside.  We’ll have to lock up outside.

Bring your brainz, your pens, and your hit and run stories.

For stories about Hit & Run, check out Bikeside’s Hit & Run category:

http://www.bikesidela.org/category/campaigns/hit-and-run/

“Oh but what about the nice weather, the beach, the movie stars, the abundance of avocados??”.

No.  None of that makes up for the huge inequalities, lack of humanity and compassion, and the bad air quality.

Sure, there’s a cute, livable, walkable bubble here and there, but they’re too far apart to make LA feel like a cohesive city.  As a whole, Los Angeles blows.
First step to creating change is to complain and create a ruckus, let folks know you’re not happy.  That involves, well, a whole lot of complaining.  More cyclists (and Angelenos in general) need to complain, on a regular basis.  Stop going straight home after work to your TV shows, it’s making you lethargic and impassive.

But while you complain as loudly as you  can, you should concurrently try to find out why things aren’t the way they should be.  That’s what I’m hoping to accomplish here.  Why does my daily commute to work feel so unsafe?

Let’s start with one of the most obvious offences.  The reason so many cyclists’ commute through Beverly Hills and the LA Country Club sucks is due to the fact that they have to avoid the few streets that are direct routes through this area.  Sunset, Wilshire and Santa Monica Boulevard.  Further south, we have Olympic and Pico.  Sure, if they’re bold enough, they chance it anyway and deal with the fast moving traffic and bad pavement.  In some lone cases, even a dead-ending bike lane.

Sunset has some decent stretches. But once it starts winding around those blind curves north of the Country Club, you’re using up an extra life riding on a street with no shoulder and no sidewalk to bail out to.

Santa Monica Bl is great throughout West Hollywood, that short-lived bike lane is the best part of my commute.  Slightly better than Wilshire when crossing through Koreatown or Mid-City, but still not a pleasant ride.

Wilshire.  Oh Wilshire.  Potholes the size of craters.  Maybe one day I won’t feel like Don Quixote on a bike, fighting against the rapid buses, and dueling with fast cars with no license plates.  I keep hearing about this bike/bus lane of epic proportions – I’ll believe it when I see it.

Beverly Hills is part of the problem.  I don’t want to be the next Brandon Chau.  We need more enforcement, more accountability – why can’t the police and judicial system be biased in the cyclists’ favor for once?

Whomever is in charge of the Gauntlet on Wilshire is part of the problem.  And we’re not the only ones with a shitty street by that name.  A major part of the problem is the sheer size and placement of the Los Angeles Country Club.  Why is that monstrosity even there?!?  It feels like a slap in the face of riders commuting through there.

Residential streets are not an option – I’ve tried it enough to know that the more you turn off a street and onto another, you increase your chances of getting hit by a nonchalant unattentive motorist.  Therefore, these major thoroughfares must be made safer to ride.

From what I can tell, Los Angeles has been sucking for at least the past 30 years.  All of its major problems still haven’t been dealt with.  Regardless of what cards we’ve been dealt, we can’t let it get any worse.  If you give a damn about this city, you better complain every chance you get.

LA get your standards up!

(There’s been some great coverage of both Critical Mass and the Blood In & Hit and Run protests. Check out Alex de Cordoba’s blog – the Engaged Observer – for Critical Mass coverage, as well as this Midnight Ridazz thread for a deluge of videos, and the photo gallery. WeHo Daily covered the ride and protests, as did SoCal Soft Pedal, among many others. Post your links in the comments!)

On Friday, at 7:45 pm, a thousand cyclists turned the bend and confronted a mean red sun, low in the horizon, melting West LA. The crowd slacked and quieted, drawing a deep breath while fixie punks, bike commuters, and LAPD bike patrol took in the reds.

The cyclists of Los Angeles Critical Mass paused at the corner of Venice and Crenshaw, and then turned north, heading for Beverly Hills, and a protest at the Beverly Hills Courthouse.  When they entered Beverly Hills the LAPD escort peeled off, respecting the BHPD jurisdiction. 1300 cyclists, according to BHPD estimates, arrived to the sight of riot police arrayed on the courthouse steps.

LA Critical Mass, July 2010. Photo by Barleye.

The riot police wore smiles. I shook Sgt Ceja’s hand, and he reminded me that we had met on Tuesday. “We know you guys are good, we’re just here to dissuade any of the troublemakers who sometimes take advantage of large groups,” Sgt Ceja explained.

Tuesday cyclists stood on the same steps, many covered in fake blood, to protest the plague of hit and runs which afflicts this city, and which has taken down so many in the cycling community.  Oddly enough, though cyclists are the first to take this issue on in recent years, they are less likely to be the victim of a hit and run. At least, according to reported collisions – 38% of all collisions in Los Angeles are hit and run whereas 23% bike involved collisions end as hit and run. Either number is obscene but it’s clear that the pain is shared – motorists, cyclists, and pedestrians can all expect to be victimized by hit and run.

With Sgt Ceja’s input we set up a PA, and speakers took to the mic. Only a hundred or so of the 1300 cyclists approached our impromptu stage, so I walked into the crowd to explain our purpose. I found out that many, maybe most, of the cyclists present are not tuned into the greater movement in Los Angeles. I gave them a crude introduction. I asked crowds of 30 or 50 cyclists if they had ever been hit, if they had been left afterward? I asked them if when they had been hit, if it hadn’t been taken seriously by the motorist or law enforcement? With each group, each time, their were nods and shouts – most everyone had been hit or had a friend who had.

It’s the sort of conversation we ought to be having in neighborhood councils and community meetings. Who has been the victim of a hit and run? What was the outcome? We can go broader – who has been the victim of a serious crash? Who feels safe on the streets when driving, walking or biking? Or broader still – who is happy with LA’s street-life?

We can ask next – do you want to do something about it? Many cyclists who I asked this question gave me puzzled looks. In talking with cyclists, and non-cyclists, I find most people haven’t considered that we could change LA’s streets. It’s taken as a given by most that our streets are unsafe, unfriendly, and dysfunctional.

The speakers argued that night that we can change our streets. They are our streets: the condition of our streets is a product of every citizen’s relationship to them. Changing them is a simple matter of changing how citizen’s use them, and that is only a matter of changing how citizen’s think of them. Readers, aren’t we all persuasive people? Can’t we change hearts and minds?

Cyclists ask for bike lanes because it offers a (perceived) safe place on the roads for cyclists. We’re told there’s no room, that our streets are built out. I don’t agree, but all we really want is safety and respect. If we have the respect of motorists, we don’t need the space. Our interest is getting safety and respect, and if we can’t get space from LADOT, we can work with LAPD to get respect.

LAPD asks for more officers because they feel it is needed to police the streets better. They’re told that there isn’t the budget for it, that we don’t have the money. What LAPD leadership wants, as I perceive it, is to be able to better police these streets. Ultimately they want a safe streetlife for Los Angelinos. If a positive relationship with cyclists, who provide another set of eyes and ears on the streets, is a way toward safer streets LAPD will pursue it.

Cyclists and LAPD have discovered a common interest in safe & respectful streetlife The next step is for motorists & pedestrians to join the cabal. Once we all make great streetlife a priority, it will become a reality.

(Dr. Alex Thompson is the President of BikesideLA.org, a cyclist advocacy organization, and the Treasure and Community Director of Mar Vista Community Council. He can be reached at alexcthompson@gmail.com.)

"Cool Ass" Mike Bowers of 1000Bikes.org (via The Engaged Observer)

Blood In protest, Photo by Gary Kavanagh

“The drivers that hit us and run are driving in your neighborhoods, past your kid’s school, your mother’s church, and your house” – that was the message from cyclists to citizens at a protest on Tuesday.  The protest was sparked by a light sentence handed down by Judge Elden S. Fox last Tuesday in a case of felony hit and run.

Seven months ago Celine Mahdavi clobbered cyclist Louis Deliz so hard his teeth were left in her car.  Mahdavi drove away, leaving Deliz to die in the street.  Deliz was rushed to Cedar Sinai where his life was saved by modern medicine.  He spent 8 days in a medically induced coma, 11 days in the ICU and 49 days total hospitalized.  Today Deliz suffers from debilitating physical injuries and suffers panic attacks and seizures.

For felony hit and run, Judge Fox sentenced Mahdavi to 90 days community service, 3 years probation, and ordered her to pay full restitution to Deliz.  Mahdavi will serve no jail time for nearly killing Deliz, and her 90 days of community service amounts to 720 hours, much less than 1176 hours Deliz spent in a hospital bed.

When Mahdavi was breathalyzed several hours after the hit and run, she blew a .05, in violation of California’s zero tolerance law.  Judge Fox therefore included alcohol counseling as part of her sentence, and stipulated that even when Mahdavi turns 21, as part of her probation she is not allowed to drink.

While Fox addressed the drunk part of the drunk driving (2 counts: felony hit and run, violation of CA zero tolerance law for underage drinking), he did nothing to address the driving aspect of the felony count. Mahdavi’s license is currently suspended, but not by the justice system, by the DMV.  If the DMV chooses, Mahdavi could be back on the roads in January.  She’ll be driving to work on your streets, past your kid’s school, you mother’s church, and your house.

Joining her will be Glenn Gritzner, who hit cycling icon “Roadblock” and fled the scene.  Gritzner plead “no contest” to the charge of misdemeanor hit and run, and paid a small fine.  In the style of hit and run, Gritzner didn’t attend the hearing, but sent his attorney on his behalf.  He drives a Jaguar, and he’ll be driving it past your kid’s school, your mother’s church, and your house.

Sounds like cyclists have a problem, doesn’t it?  Sounds like cycling is an unsafe thing and we should probably stick to cars and buses.  Not exactly.

It’s worse for motorists … 38% of ALL collisions in LA are hit and run.  For cyclists the figure is 23%. Our problem is your problem.  Pedestrians get it worst of all – more than 1/3 of all traffic deaths in LA in 2008 are pedestrians.

Tuesday, 60 cyclists stood in front of the Beverly Hills Courthouse, where Judge Fox gave his tepid sentence, and agreed on this: these are our streets, they ought to be a safe, they can be safe, we can make them safe, and we will make them safe.  We are committed to this.

Today the streets are dangerous.  They’re dangerous because we let them become dangerous, we let them stay dangerous.  I allow it, you allow it, we all let this happen.  We allow people like Mahdavi and Gritzner to drive.  We make stupid excuses about needing a license to get to work.  Is it more important that dangerous drivers get to work, or is our safety more important?  We send people for alcohol counseling but we don’t take away their license.  We let people who drive carelessly, who drive recklessly, who don’t care one whit for human life, we let them go out there and do it again.

We are rewarded for it with oppressive, unwelcoming street lives.

These are our streets and this is our fault.  It is our responsibility to do something about it.  We do have the power to take back our streets.  We can insist that we step into a welcoming environment.  We can demand that LA’s streetlife be civilized and enjoyable, safe and secure.  These are our streets, and we control their destiny.

Drivers who hit and run are, simply put, ill.  Their self interest overrides their empathy at the most critical moment, when they have a human obligation to render aid.  You may argue that self interest is paramount, but you would be wrong.  Greater is the instinct, greater in civilization and greater in nature, to attend to suffering.  Drivers who hit and leave, ignoring that instinct, should not be driving.

Bikeside LA, a cyclist advocacy organization, will seek legislation in Sacramento that makes the revocation of hit and run drivers’ licenses mandatory upon conviction.  We hope that activists and community leaders of all stripes will join us in our initiative to put Life Before License – a small step toward restoring life to our streets.  Join us!  If you would like to support, endorse, collaborate or participate in our efforts, email me at alexcthompson@gmail.com.

Die-In at LACM, RIP Jesus Castillo

Last year when Jesus Castillo was killed LA Critical Mass went to the site of his death, joined together around his ghost bike, and held a die-in to honor him, and call attention to the driver’s crime.

A little over a year later we are still plagued by hit and runs.  I humbly suggest that those at the front of Los Angeles Critical Mass, who set it’s direction and pace, take the ride to the Beverly Hills Courthouse, where protesters gathered on Tuesday to decry hit and run.

Here’s a route proposal:

A suggested LACM route - south on Western, west on Venice, north on Crenshaw, west on Olympic, continue west on San Vicente, continue west on Burton Way

I respect the fact that LA Critical Mass has no leaders per se, and I value that the route is set by the collective will.  Let’s all work together and bring the ride to the courthouse, a symbolic site of failed justice, and make ourselves heard!

By the way – this video from Tuesday was just released by filmmaker Rick Darge:

On Tuesday, July 27th, and Friday, July 30th, cyclists will gather at the Beverly Hills Courthouse to protest the tepid sentence handed down by Judge Elden S. Fox for Celine Mahdavi.  Mahdavi hit cyclist Louis Deliz and left him to die in the street on December 1st, 2009; Deliz was hospitalized for 49 days.

Mahdavi pleaded “no contest” to felony hit and run charges and threw herself on the mercy of the court, instead of accepting the plea deal offered by the DA.  Judge Fox gave her 90 days of community service, and 3 years of probation.  Mahdavi will spend less time in community service – 720 hours – than Deliz spent in the hospital – 1176 hours.

Cyclists are calling it the last straw.  Bikeside LA President Alex Thompson said “this sentence is symbolic of the lack of respect cyclists get throughout the justice system.”

Many expressed frustration that Fox made no effort to restrict Mahdavi’s driving privileges, leaving decisions about the status of Mahdavi’s license at the discretion of the DMV.

At both events Bikeside LA will announce a new campaign:  Life before License.  Life before License will specifically address hit and run, seeking state level legislation to change how hit and run is treated by courts.

The Friday protest may be joined by the hundreds of cyclists participating in LA Critical Mass – the ride which recently drew headlines when it clashed with LAPD.  LAPD and riders made peace in June when LAPD facillitated with a large police escort.

Event details:

Tuesday, July 27th, 6:15 pm
Beverly Hills Courthouse
9355 Burton Way
Blood In Press Conference
interviews to follow press conference
open mic available to attendees after press conference

Friday, July 30th, 8:15 pm
Beverly Hills Courthouse
9355 Burton Way
Press Conference
interviews to follow press conference
open mic available to attendees after press conference

Lindsay Lohan will likely serve 14 days of the 90 day sentence in County jail she began today.  She violated the terms of her probation on DUI charges.

The same day that Lohan turned herself in to the Beverly Hills Courthouse, the case against Celine Mahdavi was scheduled for a pretrial hearing on the 3rd floor.  I know because I walked through the gauntlet of photographers so I could surrender my tools and my camera to security to go upstairs and observe.

Celine Mahdavi hit Louis Deliz so hard that his teeth were embedded in her car, then drove away, Deliz’ body dislodging from her car and landing face down.  He lost most of the lower half of his jaw, all his lower teeth, broke both legs, broke nearly all his fingers, broke his hip, and punctured a lung (if memory serves.)  Just a few days ago, Louis had a massive seizure, and he is still seeing double from it.  To this day he can’t walk right, he can’t talk right, he can’t see right, and he has nightmares and flashbacks.  Mahdavi, 18 at the time, was pulled over a half mile from the accident where she tested positive for alcohol.

A few hours after Lohan began her 90 days in jail, Judge Elden S. Fox sentenced Mahdavi to 90 days of community service – 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, to be done in a 180 day period.  Most likely Mahdavi will be picking up trash with CalTrans or taking part in graffiti removal.

Fox also ordered that Mahdavi should pay full restitution to Deliz, serve 36 months probation, take part in alcohol counseling, participate in the Hospitals and Morgue program.

"She shouldn't drive unless she has a valid driver's license" - Judge Eldon S. Fox to hit and run perpetrator Celine Mahdavi, who permanently disabled Louis Deliz

The prosecution offered Mahdavi a plea of 1 year in jail and 5 years probation.  Instead, Mahdavi’s defense submitted a memorandum of disposition, effectively falling on the mercy of the court, and allowing the judge to sentence Mahdavi without trial.  Fox offered the far lesser sentence, with a variety of self contradictory justification.  Sometimes calling the collision an “accident” – implying that there was no intent without explanation – Fox explained how he considered a 1 year, 6 month, then a 4 month, and finally a 90 day sentence in County jail.  Finally, he explained, he settled on no jail time at all (or 1 day for each count, but 1 day also credited for each count.)

Fox talked tough to Mahdavi saying “I do not believe for one minute that you did not realize you were in a collision for a cyclist” and went on to specify that she should have known that he injured someone.  He explained to Deliz’ family that he found it hard to look at the photographs and evidence.  “My heart goes out to you”, Fox said.

Fox told Mahdavi that she cannot carry any deadly weapons during the 3 years of her probation, listing guns and knives as examples of deadly weapons.  Fox did not list cars as deadly weapons, only ordering that Mahdavi should not drive “unless she has a valid driver’s license.”

Know this cyclists – no one will defend you.  If you are hit it is unlikely the police will care.  If they do care, it is unlikely it will go to court.  If it does go to court, it is unlikely the judge will care.  You are on your own.  If you don’t have a big family like Louis does – one that will step in and step up to take care of you – then you can’t get hit.  You can’t get hit because you won’t get treated fairly.  I know getting hit isn’t under your control, just understand that no one that matters cares about you, and the “justice” system will not take care of you.

There is basically no reason not to hit cyclists and pedestrians – it’s open season.

(edited for correct spelling of “Celine” – thanks commenter Rach Stevo)

(Edit: Celine Mahdavi’s license is currently suspended it is my understanding, as a result of her not responding to inquiries from the DMV re this incident.  Lawyers at the hearing seemed to agree that she will be able to apply for removal of the suspension early next year.  What’s absurd to me is that she would be allowed to obtain a license at all, that her license is suspended and not revoked, and that the judge would leave this decision to the DMV, rather than ordering it suspended.

So, no Mahdavi on the streets (at least legally speaking) now, but possibly early next year.)

I’m outside the Beverly Hills Municipal Courthouse awaiting the arrival of Louis “Birdman” Deliz. The air is crisp and full of the murmur of morning gridlock along Burton Way. Louis shows up, I give him a handshake and we wait for more people to make the scene.

I learned about Louis’ devastating hit and run several months ago and just recently we met at the Bikerowave. Louis was allegedly left hooked by Celine Mahdavi, then age 18, and her Mercedes SUV at the intersection of La Cienega Boulevard and Holloway Drive. She is charged with two felony counts: Felony Hit & Run, and Felony DUI under the age of 21. She got out on a $10,000 bond the next morning. Louis wasn’t so lucky: he spent 11 days in the ICU, 9 days in a coma, and 49 days in the hospital. Louis suffered massive injuries to his face, broke both his hands and his hip is now made out of steel. After a 3 year PRO cycling career riding with strongest and fastest cyclists in the world he had to depend on a machine to keep him alive. Celine Mahdavi might have taken away his physique; but, the “Birdman’s” determination to make her pay the price in court is strong.

We’re now in the wood paneled courtroom and taking up a row of seats to support Louis. To our right is Celine Mahdavi with a few family and friends. She looks sullen until a brief conversation with her defense attorney and she casts a short lived, beaming smile. I wonder, to myself, what is that about? We’ve been waiting a long time since the arraignment in February to get to the next step in the case: the preliminary hearing (March 22 was the initial hearing date that was moved to today, June 11). We just want this case to get started so Louis can move on with his life.

The court is called to order, and after a Pledge of Allegiance, Judge Eldon S. Fox calls Louis’ case. Immediately Celine Mahdavi’s defense attorney states that due to being unable to obtain the evidence of Louis’ damaged bicycle he wants the preliminary hearing to be postponed and moved 30 days. A harsh uproar erupts from our side of the courtroom. The defense attorney states that he does not know where the bike is and has no way to let his expert witness to examine the evidence. Another outcry breaks out from our side of the courtroom.

The fact is Louis’ bike is being held by the Sheriff’s Department. It’s locked away in storage locker somewhere. A sad, lonely, mangled bicycle left in a dark corner of The System.

To our dismay the prosecuting attorney accepts the defense attorney’s request and amends it with 15 additional days. 45 days until the preliminary hearing, which we expected to take place today, is just too long to wait again. Our row bursts with anger and upset. After some back and forth about schedules, vacations, and furlough days the Judge sets the preliminary hearing date for July 20, 2010. The attorneys agree and the defendant, Celine Mahdavi gives her consent.

I think I catch a smirk flash across Ms. Mahdavi’s face as she turns to exit the court. It quickly morphs back into a look of dread as we watch her return to the security of her friends and family on the far side of the courtroom. 45 more days until her next court date. 45 more days we wait till justice can take it’s course.

Want to help Louis “Birdman” Deliz and show that his hit and run has hurt the whole bicycling community? Write a statement of how it has affected you and show up to the Beverly Hills Municipal Court on July 20, 2010 to read it. Write a letter to the District Attorney stating your concerns about the case and it’s delay in bringing Celine Mahdavi to justice:

[Celine Mahdavi (Case #SA073459) – Victim – Louis Deliz]

Steven Katz, Esq.
Deputy District Attorney
Beverly Hills Area Office
9355 Burton Way, Room 400
Beverly Hills CA 90210

This two hour session attracted many folks from Caltrans, SCAG (Southern California Association of Governments), California Highway Patrol, LAPD, Burbank PD as well as Metro. Unfortunately there was no sight of LADOT, who would have really benefited from this presentation.

Cyclists on the street know the roads and the issues better than bureaucrats sitting in an office.

The LA Bike Map, created with data from the LAPD, has more impact when presented by a cyclist, who has experienced those incidents that he is addressing and that he is researching. Alex Thompson did a wonderful job and his presentation drew a lot of comments and questions resulting in some nice brainstorming going on in the room.

Hit & Run incidents are always more shocking when one knows the victim. Having had Louis Bianco at the Bikeside SPEAKS! presentation on Saturday left people upset and at the same time fired up to change our streets.

It was no different today, when Sara presented her data about the various incidents that occurred in the past few years. Sara talked about Roadblock, Ed Magos, Jen Diamond and Jesus Castillo among the many other victims of hit and runs and Sara brought her vulnerability to the table, because she knows the people she talked about.

After our presentation, Sgt. Krumer showed the LAPD officers training video and CHP’s Officer Vince Ramirez and Burbank PD Motor Officer Justin Meadows made themselves available in a panel discussion about law enforcement and how each entity deals with cyclists on the streets.

Questions were raised and discusses about how we can educate the motoring public, about law enforcement around Freeway ramps and about jurisdictions. Metro vs. Cyclist incidents were again brought up and Sgt. Krumer repeated that LAPD will handle those incidents because the crime occurred on the street and they are responsible to cover those incidents. Krumer said that just like with any collision on the street, there needs to be the same informational exchange between cyclists and Metro driver and LAPD will help us handle those situations.

It was a great meeting with robust discussions, great crowd and great energy. Bikeside had 6 people representing, including Stephen Box, Jeremy Grant, Max Berson and DJ Wheels.

Check out our photos on facebook and don’t forget to follow us on twitter for up-to-the-minute updates.

Ten minutes earlier ‘Mouse’ and I are walking south.  We hear skidding tires, and we turn around to see two things.  We see an SUV rocking back, as if it had just braked hard.  We see a car careening toward a pole.

It slams into the pole.

Mouse and I start walking, then start running toward the wreck.  The SUV eases forward, as if evaluating, then guns it, turning left down Venice Blvd, leaving.  “Chase it down” the bikeless Mouse says to me, but in the space between setting my bike down and mounting it, I realize there’s no way I’m catching him, not at 3am with no traffic and no lights in sight.

A green cab takes off after the SUV.

We run up on the car.  It’s wrapped part way around the pole, and the airbags make it impossible to see inside.  Out of nowhere, a young man, and then a young woman pop out from the car.  “Are you alright?”  “Are you ok?”  “Yes.”  “Are you alright?”  “Yes, I think so.”  We ask again, but they seem ok.

Mouse is on the phone with dispatch.  What a great guy – he’s on top of it.  “Alex, they want to talk to you.”

“Hello?”  “Do you need paramedics?”  “No.  No, I think they’re ok.  It was a hit and run, are you sending police?”  The girl says her arms hurt.  I look at the mangled car.  “I was wrong.  Send rescue, send paramedics.”  “Ok sir, we’re sending paramedics.”  “Send rescue . . .”

We all stand around, talking, and I notice a car run over some debris in the intersection.  It’s way out in the intersection, like the collision threw it.  I go and pick it up.  It’s a license plate.

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I wrote a post a while back, when LAPD told us that 23% of bike involved collisions are hit and run.  The way I wrote it, the way it was received, it was like “how obscene is this?”  You get hit riding a bike, 1 in 4 chance you’re left for dead.  1 in fucking 4.  Disgusting.

We are not special.  38% of all collisions in LA are hit and run.  Motorists are MORE likely to be victims of hit and run.  More likely.

Does this make anyone mad?  Does this make anybody else furious and embarassed for the human race?

This isn’t a cycling issue.  It’s an LA issue.  It’s an issue everywhere there are roads.

____________________

She’s fine, but she’s animated, fretting about her car.  She just nearly died and she’s so upset about her car.  It doesn’t make sense to me.  Why would you think about that?

Shock.

Mouse and I try to get her to sit down.

The driver of the green cab returns.  We all go over and he tells us how he got some numbers off the plate.  “It’s a Ford SUV.”  We talk about how old it is, how it’s shaped.  I wonder how we will get her to sit down again?  “Not like an Escalade” I say, “but high and narrow.”  “Like an Explorer” he says.  Silver.

He’s working, so he’s got to go.  We take down his info and he leaves

The firemen, show up next, and then the cops show up a second later.  They examine the victims.  While Mouse and I talk with the cops, a fireman sits her down.  He puts the blood pressure cuff on her arm, and then I guess her adrenaline wears off, and she starts to cry.

Mouse and I are talking with the investigators about the accident, and while we’re talking, illustrating the collision with our hands, we’re toeing the license plate on the ground.  I noticed that the plate on the ground doesn’t match the plate on car, but I don’t put it together.  The cop – he does.

The plate is from the SUV.  It doesn’t match, because it’s not from the car.  And like the cabbie said, it begins in 6, and there’s a 75.

We didn’t see the two cars make contact.  How would the plate come off if they didn’t make contact?  All me and Mouse saw was the SUV stopped, and the car careening into the pole.  I just assumed that the SUV participated in the accident, possibly forcing the victims to swerve, but there was no contact . . . except, by the time we turned around, the car was past the SUV.

We all go and look at the side of the car.  The door to the back seat is crumpled in.  The SUV must have hit the side of the car and knocked it’s plate off in the process.  The victims were probably turning left, the impact deflected their turn, directing them into the pole.

They run the plate.  It’s a Ford.  SUV.

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We talk a lot about hit and run.  We talk a lot about hit and run on cyclists.  And cyclists getting hurt.  And the injustices of that.

This issue is so much broader.  As immersed as many of us are in cycling, it’s hard to think that something could be more important.  But the fact is that most victims of hit and run are not cyclists.

It’s happening out there, and it’s happening to everyone – not just cyclists.  Hit and run perps are getting away with it, and you know where they drive once they leave the scene?  They drive in LA neighborhoods where people walk and run.  They drive past churches and swimming pools and farmers markets.  They drive on freeways.  They drive past elementary schools.  They are, very much, among us.

Leaving the scene where someone could be dying, where they may need aid, it’s uncivilized.  It’s sociopathic.  It’s a conscious decision not to take care of a person in desperate need.  It’s inhumane, hell, it’s not ever mammalian.  Mammals take care of their own.

We need to think broadly about it.

____________________

It’s time for me and Mouse to go.  I’m tired, he’s tired, and we’re not doing shit.  I mean, there’s nothing for us to do.

I approach the girl.  “Can I have your number please?”  Between sobs she gives me ten digits, and I read them back to her.  “I’m going to call you tomorrow and we’ll talk about this, ok?”  She nods.  I leave her sobbing, having done nothing to soothe her.

I’m so lame.

Earlier today Glenn Gritzner plead no contest to misdemeanor hit and run, specifically to violating California Vehicle Code 20002(a): leaving the scene of an accident where there was property damage.  Roadblock, a well known and respected leader in the cycling community, was hit by Gritzner’s Jaguar months ago, and left lying in the street. Today, Gritzner’s attorney came to the Metropolitan Courthouse in Downtown LA to plead guilty on his client’s behalf, in a plea bargain worked out with the city attorney.

For his sentence, Gritzner may choose between seven days in county jail, 47 days of community service, or a $510 fine (after fees this amounts to about $2k.)  He also must pay restitution to Roadblock, and he will be booked within the next 6 months.

As part of the plea deal, Gritzner stipulates that there is a factual basis for his plea, a legal admission that there is strong evidence that he committed the crime.  The case now heads to civil court.