Posted on 08/30/2012 4:24:05 AM PDT by equaviator
Police say pickup truck driver shot bicyclist after crash, altercation at Telegraph, Northline roads
TAYLOR, Mich. -
A bicyclist who was shot after being involved in a traffic accident with a pickup driver in Taylor has died.
Taylor police say the bicyclist died during surgery after the Wednesday night incident with a 46-year-old driver.
Police said the two began arguing after the bicyclist disregarded a "Do Not Cross" signal at Telegraph and Northline roads, causing the driver to hit him. Witnesses said the bicyclist got up and confronted the driver.
"The pedestrian light was red. He wasn't supposed to be crossing and ran into the side of the truck," said witness Michelle Noffsinger. "He jumped up, he got up, and he ran around the front of the truck to the driver's side and he just started pounding on this guy. He hit him ... maybe seven times or so, and then the driver shot him and he fell to the ground. It was just really crazy."
Witnesses told police the driver pulled a pistol and fired one round at the bicyclist, striking him in the chest. The motorist stayed at the scene until police arrived. He is being held pending any charges.
Police said they are still trying to identify the bicyclist. He is described as a white man between 35 and 40 years old with gray hair. He was riding a 10-speed bike.
Anyone with information on the crash, shooting and the bicyclist's identity is asked to contact the Taylor Police Department.
I would guess that 99% of bicyclists have drivers licenses. I’m licensed to drive vehicles under 26K and motorcycles, so I don’t think I’d have a problem getting a bicycle license.
“Bike must have been a Schwinn Varsity”
I’m thinking Schwinn Continental...It’s more worldy and sophisticated sounding.
I'm not so sure...
The witness said the pedestrian light was red - not the traffic light. A bicycle has the same rights to the road as any other vehicle, and the same responsibility to follow the traffic signs and lights. In this case, it seems that the witness thought that the bike was in the wrong because of the pedestrian light aspect. There are times at intersections that pedestrian lights are red and the main traffic signal is still green. That doesn't make the cyclist in the wrong. I'd need to see more info from the police report.
That said, he was an idiot for getting into a physical confrontation with the driver.
People forget that most bicyclists are drivers too. As a driver I have come across cyclists like the ones you mentioned. I am always sorely tempted...
BTW, I rode the Seattle to Portland every year between 1991 and 2006. You guys make it possible.
One less bike rider who thinks he owns the road.
I ride close to 30 miles an hour. Bicycle and jogging paths are not made for cyclists - they're built for leisure riders, kids, and joggers, all of whom don't want high speed riders zooming past them.
My road bike is 2x9
I cracked up reading that.
I gotta tell you the saddest case of me being hit was on a commute. It was a spectacular summer day and the traffic was dead stopped. I’m zinging by in the bike lane and a guy in a gorgeous red Porsche Carrera has had it and decides to turn right into a side area just as I come up on him (no signal or anything, just really abrupt). I hit the side of his car and my pedal is stuck coming up on the top inside his wheel well. I hear a crunch as I force it through the fender to keep from going down.
I didn’t even slow down and rode on home. I didn’t want the hassle.
Yeah. Good catch. That being said, if the bike had a green light, it means the guy in the truck was running a red light.
Do you have any idea how hard it is to train a bicycle to do that to it’s rider?
Sounds like a good shoot and a misleading headline.
“That said, he was an idiot for getting into a physical confrontation with the driver.”
Yeah, for a minute there he was lucky to be alive but then he totally blew it.
A guy at work told me, "I will never vote Democratic as long as I am alive, after that, all bets are off."
I always had a lot of respect for people who could do those bike tours. The area where I lived (around Lynchburg) was hilly and some of those tours went into some serious climbs and descents. Me, I was just the big fat dude with a radio and a pickup truck who picked up the ones that couldn’t make it. :)
It wasn’t always safe, either. One guy died of a heart attack on one of the rides (”dead before he hit the ground,” was what I heard later from one of the EMTs). Another missed a downhill curve at 40 mph, went head-on into a guardrail, tore a huge gash in his midsection going *over* said guardrail, went about 10’ down an embankment, landed on a tree stump butt-first and cracked his pelvis. But at least the tree stump kept him from rolling at least another hundred feet down a 70-degree slope. Amazingly enough, I never remember hearing of a car/bike crash, though I do remember at least one cyclist running afoul of somebody’s hound dawg.
Some of those guys rode those Saturday charity rides like it was the Tour de France.
}:-)4
I’m waiting at a light after dark. It turns green. As I press my accelerator. "
You don't have a bicycle?
The guy was on a bicycle, he was no doubt a Spandex wearing liberal. What else do you need? /s
The only thing lots of people on this thread seem to regret, is they didn't do the shooting.
I ride my bike a lot, and I am no where near spandex
and I think the cyclists down here are insane, they take over the road and complain when you pass them
so are the drivers, they slow down to yoour speed instead of just pass you
I also commute by bike, 30 mile round trip about 20-25% of the working days of the year.
While I appreciate your honesty, it is frustrating and disappointing to hear your cavalier approach to trafffic regulations.
Same road, same rules, same rights.
Clipping out and back in won't kill you, and you set a bad example when you flout the rules.
I ride a bike too, a lot. And wear Spandex. I may roll through a stop sign to avoid unclipping my pedals, but I always stop for red lights.
What surprises me is the hate you get for getting out and getting some exercise, even when you are courteous and try to minimize your impact upon others on the road. This thread is a good example, feel the love.
Yeah. I wasn’t riding that night.
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