Law enforcement officers are keeping open the case of a bicycle fatality on Hilton Head Island past the original court date to further review the evidence.
The death of Nhiem Kim, 64, raised a controversy on the island earlier this month after police charged the motorist who struck Kim with “driving too fast for conditions” — a traffic citation that carries a fine and two points.
Police reported Kim was riding her bike home from the grocery on the right side of the fog line. The initial report from the Highway Patrol stated the motorist was distracted by her cell phone; she later said she was not talking on the cell phone and her phone records will prove it. (Check out page 1 and page 2 of the South Carolina Highway Patrol incident report.)
The court has refused to accept a check that the driver, Carol Zampino, 26, sent in to pay for the fine. An attorney hired by the family of Nhiem Kim told the Island Packet newspaper that the court will not accept the check for at least 60 days while law enforcement officials review the evidence and gather more information from witnesses.
Prosecutors have explained that South Carolina law requires them to prove reckless intent to make more severe charges stick.
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