The driver of a truck that sideswiped and killed Chattanooga bike framebuilder and cycling advocate David Meek earlier this month may avoid prosecution.
A grand jury decided not to return an indictment against the truck driver, and police earlier did not cite him — not even for a possible violation of the state's 3-foot passing law. The grand jury based its decision on crash investigator's conclusion, reported in the Chattanoogan newspaper:
“… the truck driver 'could have seen the bike, but it is not likely that he should have seen the bike.' “
What kind of tortured logic is this?
Sideswiped
Meek was killed when he was sideswiped by a truck that was travelling in the same direction at 6:40 a.m. earlier this month. Reports say that the box-style truck's footboard hooked the saddlebag on Meek's bike; he fell and was run over by the truck's rear tires.
Meek, 51, was riding in the road with a flashing rear LED light, so I agree that the truck driver “could have” seen Meek and his bicycle. How is it, then, that it's “not likely that he should have seen the bike.”
Are motorists not expected to see moving objects in the road in front of them? At what point do “could have” and “should have” converge — only when the motorist is actually paying attention to the road?
The Chattanoogan reports that investigators reconstructed the crash scene and tested visibility issues. It doesn't report how the crash investigator reached his conclusion.
3-foot law
Tennessee enacted a 3-foot passing zone for motorists overtaking bicycles in 2007. It was named for two bicyclists, Jeff Roth and Brian Brown, who were mowed down by motorists. How long before this law that was passed two years ago is enforced?
A reporter from WDEF asked Governor Phil Bredesen if he'd consider committing money from a highway safety fund for eduction and enforcement of the law.
“With all the emphasis on physical fitness and getting outside and exercising, your going to see more people not fewer people riding bicycles places and inevitably they're going to mix with cars on the road, I'll go back and look at that, it really is a good idea.”
(One thousand pre-orders of the above-pictured license plate will enable it to be distributed to motorists in Tennessee.)
Deserve better
I didn't know Meek. I rode my bicycle around Tennessee about 25 years ago, but never in Chattanooga, so I know nothing first-hand about the riding situation there.
But I do think that Meek and other cyclists in Tennessee and across the US deserve better than this. After people work hard to put laws on the books to protect cyclists, those laws should be enforced.
Three-foot laws have been passed in 12 states; proponents are facing uphill battles in 5 state legislatures this year; in fact two (Ohio and Iowa) appear to be dead. Some say all those efforts are misplaced as the laws are unenforceable. Maybe they're right.
Stiffer penalities
As much as I support the 3-foot rule as a preventative measure, I also like the punitive measures in the Justice for All Campaign sponsored by the American Motorcyclist Association. It requires enhanced penalties for right-of-way violations in which victims suffer injury, serious injury or death.
Right of way violation penalties are generally light, often involving only a traffic citation. If an offender runs into another car, a crumpled fender is often the only result.
But this law realizes that right-of-way violations involving unprotected pedestrians, motorcyclists or bicyclists should carry stiffer fines and driver's license suspensions if injury or death results.
Compare
A violation of the 3-foot law in Tennessee is a Class C misdemeanor, which carries a penalty of not greater than thirty (30) days in jail or a fine not to exceed fifty dollars ($50.00), or both.
Under the Justice for All provisions suggested by the motorcycle group, a right-of-way violation in which the victim dies carries a $1,000 fine, in addition to all other penalites, and a mandatory loss of driver's license for 6 months.
Maybe the added penalty and license suspension would encourage motorists to pay more attention so they “should see” what they “could see.”
See also: “Chattanooga framebuilder killed by passing truck.”
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