Even if that's true, that doesn't explain the violence of the crash.

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Citizen of the world, former drunkard. Resident Traumatic Brain Injury advocate.

Another look at the life of the gentleman killed in this collision:
http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/index.php/archives/2013/12/10/milt-olin/

Dusty, you should know better than to try to interject with reason here. As you said before, ready, fire!, uh, aim? is the way of the web.

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____________________________________________
Don Larkin
Reach For More
http://www.reachformore.fit/
USAT Lvl1 Coach, NSCA-CPT, NASM-CPT, BS Exercise Science

No charges against the deputy. Family planning a foundation to help eliminate cycling related fatalities. Can only hope that some good comes from this senseless, avoidable death.

http://www.sgvtribune.com/...gainst-typing-deputy

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Gary Mc
Did I mention I did Kona

Thanks for posting the update. Sad ending for the family.

Total Bull Shit.

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"Good genes are not a requirement, just the obsession to beat ones brains out daily"...the Griz

Beyond unconscionable. There is nothing in that 'decision not to charge' document justifying typing on the MDT in response to a non-emergency, borderline social, enquiry from a fellow officer.

Moreover, that 'decision' doesn't appear to have been written by a prosecutor, it was written by a civil rights defense attorney. "Since Wood was acting in the scope of his duties when he began his response ... he acted lawfully. " This is specific language setting the precedent for a governmental immunity defense to any lawsuit the victim's family might file against the County.

At the least I hope the deputy lost his job for lying about the accident. A deputy making a stupid mistake and unintentionally killing a man is a horrible but ultimately forgivable thing. Getting out of the car and lying about it is not.

The deputy was reassigned but is still on the job. Disciplinary actions, if any, should come out in the civil suit.

/

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Gary Mc
Did I mention I did Kona

Sad.....

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Hook Em' Horns

Hello longella and All,

http://pvcycling.wordpress.com/.../28/license-to-kill/

"Welcome to America, kids, where justice is for those who wear a badge. Everyone else, your life isn’t worth squat.

The Los Angeles County District Attorney just released its report on the death of Milton Olin, Jr., who was killed by L.A. Sheriff’s Deputy Andrew Wood. Olin was riding his bike in a bike lane on Mulholland Drive when Deputy Wood, instead of following the curve of the road, drove straight into the bike lane and spattered Olin all over the pavement.

Deputy Wood was typing a message into his mobile digital computer at the time, responding to a non-emergency query from a fellow officer. Prior to the accident, a witness following Deputy Wood had noticed Olin in the bike lane. After killing Olin, Deputy Wood stated that he never saw Olin and didn’t even remember what he was doing prior to killing him" ....... (continued on URL)

Cheers,


Neal


+1 mph Faster

And too many runners are killed by cars. And too many other drivers are killed by cars. I know we are all cycle centric on this site, but if anyone has ever driven on I-95 (or any other major highway) you have probably witnessed a fatal crash. And yes,the driver who caused the fatal crash probably got away with a ticket. From what I can tell, there is no particular leniency for killing a cyclist. There is a lot of leniency in killing anyone using a car, because in our culture car is king.

But I can tell you, as a cautious driver who is aware of runners and cyclists, I have had my share of "there but for the grace of God" moments. Usually these involve some "Ass hole" walking on the wrong side of the road, wearing head phones, and a black t-shirt at dusk. Or the cyclist who suddenly swerves into my lane without warning, or blows through a red light to nail his strva segment.

So, yes...lots of people die under the wheels and on the hoods of cars. I am not willing to say that in every, or even most cases, it was only the driver's fault.

I cannot imagine the horror of losing a loved one in an accident like this. I also cannot imagine the horror of being the one whose acts caused the loss of a human life. But before we crucify this officer, or any other driver whose car kills another person, lets let the legal system--civil and criminal--do its work of discovery what the actual evidence shows. And for Pete's sake, lets show some compassion for every family impacted by the event. Both the families who lost someone, and the ones who have to live forever with the nightmare.

Bullshit

No you are right. Of course. As a society we have deemed that a human life has less value when wrapped in spandex and sitting on a bike. I wonder why that is.

OR....perhaps you have a particularly myopic view of the world and have no idea how many people are killed because of cars. People walk away from responsibility for fatal accidents all the time, not just when a cyclist is involved. People also get punished all the time for injuring cyclists in accidents. Not every one walks.

Since I am actually involved in the legal system, and actually deal with issues concerning fatal motor vehicle accidents on an almost daily basis, I will stand by my position.

Regardless, it probably would not be a bad idea for every cyclist on the road to assume that every car in his or her vicinity is a threat. It would also be a really good idea for cyclists to obey traffic laws. Perhaps if they did, there would be less hostility to cyclists. And PLEASE do not insult me by saying all cyclists obey the rules. Even as a cyclist, I get pretty sick and tired of seeing idots on bikes blowing through red lights. I see it alsmost every day. It has been a very long time since I saw a car do that. Just sayin.

"It has been a very long time since I saw a car do that."


I think you are the one with the myopic view. I LITERALLY see cars blowing through red lights on my walk to work EVERY WORK DAY. Two consecutive intersections. I get furious with cyclists who do that, but as a pedestrian my life is put at risk 20 times a week by cars that do that (2 intersections, 2 way commute, 5 work days). I have yet to be hit by a bike. I have been hit by inattentive drivers twice.


Bikers who disobey traffic laws are very wrong and can kill pedestrians or other cyclists. Cars disobey traffic laws (regardless of whether you are pretending not to see them) and DO kill pedestrians or cyclists far more often than bikes do.

One example does not prove the rule, but it will be interesting to see how those in the camp of "due punishment will be served" and "cops don't get favourable treatment" spin this one.

OK...so now I really start the argument. How on earth do you get hit by an inattentive driver if you are paying attention? Did you not see the car coming? Did you assume because you had the green you could walk? I am 52. I have run over 10,000 miles and biked over 50,000. I have driven over a million. I have never ever ever ever hit another human, bike or car. I have never been hit by another bike, human or car. Lucky? yes, because I have had close calls. But I have never ever walked in front of a moving car in my life. If I cannot see the driver is looking at me, I stand on the curb. So, yes. I have a myopic view. It is one that puts responsibility on the indivual for his or her own safety. Absolutely there are times a cyclist, runner, or another driver is maimed or killed trhough absolutely no fault of their own. Maybe your incidents were just those occasions. I also assume that since you have this uncanny ability to see daily traffic violations you have asked your local police to monitor the intersection.

This is all f-in sad!
Wonder what would be the effect if Cyclists across N.A descended upon LA for a week of protests and riots in the streets?


.

I am 44 years old. I have been commuting by foot or bike for over 30 years. I have been hit by a car about once every 15 years.

Once I was a dumb 12 year old. 12 year olds can do dumb things, but I was in a crosswalk with a walk signal. I was not as dumb as the car turning without looking.

Once I was an adult riding through a green light. A car turned left without looking. I possibly could have been riding more defensively (and I have done so since then), but I was certainly less wrong than the car turning left without checking for oncoming traffic.

And I don't have a magic ability to see traffic violations. I walk to work (defensively) in a city with two busy intersections. Impatient drivers run the red lights during rush hour. Cops don't do anything about it. C'est la vie.

Hello theoMop and All,

Seth Davidson posts: Shoot the messengers, but ride with them first

August 29, 2014 § 6 Comments

This is gonna be short. (That’s what he said.)

On Wednesday, September 3, the LA County Bicycle Coalition is rolling out from the crash site on Mulholland to hand deliver a letter urging the Los Angeles County District Attorney to revisit the decision by assistant D.A. Rosa Alarcon not to file charges against Deputy Andrew Wood for killing cyclist Milton Olin, and to consider prosecuting him for vehicular manslaughter.

I hope you’ll join us for some or all of the route, which is:

• 4:00 p.m. Meet at crash site (around 22532 Mulholland Hwy, Calabasas, CA 91302)
• 4:15 p.m. Moment of silence
• 4:30 p.m. Start ride
• 6:30 p.m. Leave from the L.A. Zoo parking lot (5333 Zoo Dr, Griffith Park, CA 90027). Other riders can meet up here.
• 7:30-8:00 p.m. Arrive at District Attorney’s office (210 W Temple Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012)
• 8:00 p.m. Candlelight vigil

See more information on the LACBC website: la-bike.org/milt-olin

It will be a slow pace, no-drop ride.

This is a great way to get off the Internet and venture out into the “meatspace,” where real shit happens. Let’s all take a stand for Milton Olin and the other bicyclists who have been killed because some cager decided that texting was more important than watching the road.

This one’s for Milton.

END

>There is nothing in that 'decision not to charge' document justifying typing on the MDT in response to a non-emergency, borderline social, enquiry from a fellow officer.

Forgive me if this is somewhere else in the thread, but what's the official LA Sheriff's Dept. policy (if there is one) for typing on an MDT? It seems that would be key in proving negligence. That along with the urgency of the message sent precluding the 5-10 seconds it would take to safely pull off the road for a moment before typing it.

I find it interesting that the Sheriff's Dept. itself recommended a manslaughter charge, but the DA didn't follow it. I don't think the Sheriff's Dept. would do that without clear evidence if policy violation or negligence by one of their own.

Other news outlets are reporting that the Deputy was also sending text messages from a personal cell phone immediately prior ( 6 messages between 1:00 and ~1:05 when the incident occurred ).

http://laist.com/2014/08/27/da_wont_charge_deputy_who_hit_napst.php

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I ride Felt.

It's very regional. Happens all the time in upstate NY. Doesn't happen in central CO. Happens plenty in TX. At least, that what I've observed.

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The point is, ladies and gentleman, that speed, for lack of a better word, is good. Speed is right, Speed works. Speed clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit.