The motorist who slammed into a bicyclist on a Utah highway last year was found guilty of negligent homicide on Thursday.
The jury's verdict means a judge could sentence 67-year-old Elizabeth Deseelhorst up to one year in jail for the death of Josie Johnson, 25, left. The Salt Lake Tribune reports the jury took 5 hours to reach a verdict.
The cyclist's death on Sept. 18, 2004, galvanized the bike community in Utah to seek stronger laws to protect cyclists. The result was House Bill 49, which requires motorists to give cyclists a wide margin when passing — 3 feet if allowable. It also marked the beginning of a bicycling awareness event the “Josie Johnson Memorial Ride” sponsored by the Salt Lake County Bicycle Advisory Committee.
The victim's family said they felt relieved the case was finally over; it had reminded them of their loss.
Ken Johnson, her brother, said:
“Josie, in some way, through all these things, lives on. Her legacy goes forward.”
According to court testimony, Deseelhorst's vehicle ran into the back of Johnson's bicycle as she rode at the edge of the road in Big Cottonwood Canyon.
Initially, Deseelhorst told police that she had steered to the left to pass the cyclist, who veered into the path of the car. She testified in court, however, that she didn't recollect anything, except striking the cyclist.
A neurologist and her attorney offered that Deseelhorst had suffered a mild stroke before the accident, according to testimony in the Salt Lake Tribune, and there would be no crime if the motorist were suffering a medical emergency at the time of the accident.
The trial began Tuesday in the 3rd District Court. Deseelhorst is scheduled for sentencing Feb. 3, 2006.
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