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Thursday, May 07, 2009

This week's bicycle accidents and fatalities

Child on Bicycle Killed in Smyrna Crash
Written by Kye Parsons
May 8, 2009 10:14 AM CDT


SMYRNA, Del.- Delaware State Police say a 5-year-old boy riding a bicycle was killed Wednesday when he was run over by the rear tires of a tractor-trailer on Glenwood Avenue in Smyrna. It happened at around about 6:10 p.m. Troopers say an 18-wheel tractor-trailer was traveling west on Glenwood Avenue near School Lane. According to police, 5-year-old Christopher T. Foote Jr. of Smyrna was riding a bicycle north on School Lane and failed to stop at a stop sign. Police say Foote entered the intersection and hit the rear of the trailer. The rear wheels of the trailer then ran over the boy. Foote, who was not wearing a helmet, died of his injuries. The driver of the tractor-trailer, 42-year-old Vaughn E. Wilson of Suffolk, Va, was not hurt. Police say Wilson was wearing a seatbelt and alcohol is not a factor. The roadway was closed for approximately three hours while troopers investigated the accident. Troopers say no charges have been filed in the crash.

British tourist in NY for charity dies in Queens bicycle accident
BY Edgar Sandoval and Simone Weichselbaum
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITERS
Thursday, May 7th 2009


A British tourist visiting the city to raise money for a charity was killed while riding his bike in Queens Wednesday after colliding with a truck, police said. Stephen Hoadnett, 40, of London, was peddling along Jamaica Ave. and Lefferts Blvd. in Richmond Hill when he collided with a 10-wheeler truck, police sources said. Hoadnett was pronounced dead at Jamaica Hospital minutes after the 2:20 p.m. crash, police said. He was working to earn cash for seeing-eye dogs, sources said, by asking for donations at subway stations. The driver remained on the scene and no criminality was suspected.

Defendant convicted of lesser charge, Leaving the scene of an accident carries up to 180 days in jail and a $1,000 fine
BY LOREN GENSON • Gazette Staff Writer • May 7, 2009


WAVERLY - Sara Bender was found guilty of a lesser charge in connection with the death of a Tour of the Scioto River Valley bicyclist last year after a Pike County jury weighed the evidence against her for less than two hours. Bender, 36, of Lucasville, had been charged with failure to stop after an accident that killed William Crowley, 57, of Northville, Mich., a third-degree felony, but the jury found her guilty of the lesser charge of leaving the scene of an accident. The charge is a first-degree misdemeanor, carrying a sentence of up to 180 days in jail and a $1,000 fine. Bender had faced up to five years in prison for Crowley's death if convicted on the original charge, but because the jury issued a special finding that Crowley would have died regardless of her actions after the accident, she will be sentenced on the first-degree misdemeanor. Read more. See another article here.

What happened to DU Law Professor Erik Bluemel?
Glorianne Scott
Denver Legal News Examiner


UPDATE: (May 7, 2009) - Investigation by the Denver Police Department has confirmed that the incident that killed Bluemel was, in fact, a bicycle accident, although no other vehicle was involved, and the cause for the bicycle crash is still unknown. There is some mystery surrounding yesterday’s bicycle incident that killed DU Law Professor Erik Bluemel. We know this: Bluemel was on his bicycle between 15th and Blake Street whenhe became injured. An email to the students today from Law School Dean Beto Juarez mentioned that Bluemel had been assaulted; Denver Police spokesman Sonny Jackson states that the injuries are the result of an accident wherein Bluemel crashed his bicycle. Bluemel was pronounced brain dead just after noon today, and his parents are preparing to donate his organs. Bluemel had joined the University of Denver Sturm College of Law in August and was a professor of administrative law, environmental law, and “indigenous peoples in international law.” Educated at New York University and Georgetown University, Bluemel, 32, brought both enthusiasm and relevant experience to his position. The investigation surrounding the incident which killed Bluemel is ongoing; updates will be posted as they are known.

Police: Investigation into bus, bicycle accident continues
oanow.com
Donathan Prater, Staff Writer
Published: May 6, 2009


The investigation continues into an accident Tuesday that landed a 21-year-old bicyclist in the hospital with non-life threatening injuries and temporarily closed the road. The bicyclist was riding southbound on North Donahue Drive near the Camden Ridge Subdivision when an Auburn City school bus that was dropping off students along a route passed the female bicyclist, who lost her balance and fell. “She’s currently recovering from her injuries at the East Alabama Medical Center,” said Auburn Police Division Capt. Tom Stofer. “We’ve interviewed the driver of the school bus, but are still investigating the accident and will speak to the woman involved as well as any witnesses to the incident,” added Stofer. A portion of North Donahue Drive was closed for about 15 minutes Tuesday afternoon as officers and emergency personnel worked the scene.

Conn. police say boy's bicycle death an accident
The Associated Press
Updated: 05/04/2009


PLAINFIELD, Conn.—Plainfield police say the bicycle death of a 13-year-old boy over the weekend is being investigated as an accident. William Howard died Saturday after he fell off his bike and struck his head at a skateboard park. Police says witnesses told them the boy was trying a maneuver at the top of a ramp at the park on Lions Drive when he lost control and fell, striking his head. Police say they are investigating the incident, but all indications are that it was an accident.