I can't imagine the offender will be returning that letter with a phone call to police. So then does it just end? If the accused never calls back, does it still go on his record? Do the police really just mail a letter and cross their fingers in case of hit and run when a motor vehicle is hit? On Jun 24, 2013 9:53 AM, "Grant Foster" <[email protected]> wrote:
> So, I was struck (twice) by a MV yesterday while riding on Williamson St. > Some friends and I were returning from a long road ride and were headed to > Monty's. East of Dickinson, a guy in a fancy Cadillac rolls up along side > of the group and starts yelling at me that there's a bike path 1 block over > and to get off the road. (We were travelling in the right hand lane > alongside the parked cars and weren't any impediment to MV traffic.) I > yelled something back about there also being other roads he could drive > on.He then proceeded to swerve in to my lane of travel. I swerved away from > him, but didn't have a lot of room due to the parked cars. He was so close > that I knocked on his hood as I was swerving away, in hopes of helping him > understand how dangerously close he was. This must have put him over the > edge, because he backed off for a second or two before accelerating into my > rear wheel. This wasn't a side swipe, but actually driving at me at an > angle trying to hit me/run me over. I'm not sure how I didn't fall, but I > didn't. This apparently frustrated him even more, so he took another pass, > this time gunning it enough to squeal his tires. By this time the parked > cars had finished, so I was able to swerve to the right as he came at me. > His side mirror hit me on the butt/hip as he gunned it. It was forceful > enough to knock his mirror in and, although I didn't feel it until last > evening, it left my hip tender (no bruise that I can see). > > I was in such shock and disbelief that I kept riding to Monty's and > actually ate lunch while talking about what had happened with my friends. > (We had done 80 miles and we were all on the edge, so stopping to eat > wasn't exactly optional.) We talked about how important it was to report > what happened and I debated a little. Somehow, since I wasn't injured and > my bike was mostly unharmed (the rear QR skewer and fender stay show the > black of his tire where he hit me and the fender was bent) I wondered if > there would even be a consequence for his action? Would it just be a pain > in the butt and waste of time to report what happened? > > One of my friends did get his plate and I decided it was important that I > call it in. I really felt like this was beyond the worst road rage and that > this guy was actually unstable. I called it in when I got home. An officer > called me back and I gave her my report and agreed to 'press charges'. I > also gave her the info for one of my friends that saw what happened. > > > The officer said she was able to identify the vehicle, but didn't have a > phone number that worked for the owner. She would be sending out a letter > asking him to call in and we would take it from there. She was great to > work with and I feel like she cared about what happened, although, I was > kind of surprised that an officer wouldn't show up at the MV owner's house > to ask questions and take a look at the car. > > So, today as I reflect on it I'm left wondering: What will happen to this > guy? What would happen if he would have pulled out a pistol and shot it at > me, hitting my bike and grazing my arm? Would he get a letter in the mail? > Is that a false comparison? What does 'press charges' mean? Is what he did > considered criminal? > > I'm interested in people's thoughts. Stay safe out there. > > Grant > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > Bikies mailing list > [email protected] > http://lists.danenet.org/listinfo.cgi/bikies-danenet.org > >
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