Felony charges filed against motorist in bike crash case

Here's the top of the story by my colleague Joanna Lin, freshly posted on The Times' homepage:

A Brentwood man who allegedly stopped his car suddenly in front of two cyclists, causing one to crash through the rear window, was charged today with felony reckless driving, the Los Angeles County district attorney's office said.

Christopher Thomas Thompson, who turned 59 today, is charged with two felony counts each of reckless driving causing injury, battery with serious bodily injury and the special allegation of causing great bodily injury, the district attorney's office said.

Thompson allegedly slammed on the brakes of his red Infiniti sedan in front of two cyclists riding downhill on Mandeville Canyon Road. Police said the impact flung one cyclist through the car's rear window and the other to the pavement.

Here's the link to the full story.

Comments

[Lori DiBiasio]

Hello,my name is Lori DiBiasio,my husband was struck and killed on his Bicycle,it will be 1 year this sept 4.he was the picture of health 6ft5 275and full of life ,a gentle giant.The 59yr,old women was traveling southbound as was Frank, he was in a very large breakdown lane,3:00 pm.witnesses from New York say she was traveling over the speed limit,which was 50mph.and passed them then continued to drive in the brake down lane,at about 65mph.never once did her brake lights go on.Frank was struck,then rolled off her windshield and hood and run over again.She stopped about 500ft after .never got out of her vechicle to even look at what she had done.The last 3 minutes of Franks life,were on the roadside.A considerate passerby stopped and placed her sweater over Frank.The driver was not hurt.She first faced a 10 year sentence,then as a few wks passed the attorney General Patrick Lynch dropped the charges,saying it was an accident.I kost my Love and soulmate and my very best friend that day.I needed to honor this beautiful man in some way,so for the last 6 months ive been organizing a BICYCLE SAFETY AWARNESS/SHARE THE ROAD>FRANKSRIDE...on Sept13 2008. 25.5 ml the cyclist will pass the memorial spot where Frank was struck.My next goal is to pass a law {FRANKS LANE}.Frank will also be honored in The Ride of Silence.My heart will never be the same,but I can at least try to make a difference for the many cyclist.If anyone cares to read about this you can Google Frank Cabral cyclist death.As of today I guess its true bicyclist need to have more rights when sharing the roadways.Thanks for hearing my story,Lori DiBiasio.RI

[Bob]

------------
Bob, for one thing, we know that you are the
"anal" in analogy; plus, I'll put up my sheepskins
against yours...anyplace and time.
'til then, you get back on your cellphone in your
Beemer; and I get back on my Colnago with my
helmet on...and hope for the best.
-----------

Ahhh, so you had no intelligent manner with which to reply, so you resorted to personal attacks. Why am I not surprised, especially since your initial reply didn’t even raise anything remotely disagreeing with what I had said.

I’m sure a dolt such as yourself wouldn’t be interested, but I can afford, but don’t drive a status car, and I don’t talk on the phone while driving. And finally, I’m not the macho competitive type that feels the need to put my “sheepskins up” against strangers on the internet, or really, against anyone. I truly feel sorry for you. Have a nice day :)

[yours truly, Johnny Dollar]

Bob, for one thing, we know that you are the
"anal" in analogy; plus, I'll put up my sheepskins
against yours...anyplace and time.
'til then, you get back on your cellphone in your
Beemer; and I get back on my Colnago with my
helmet on...and hope for the best.

[Bob]

-----
"yours truly"
“Bob, bicycles are traffic. Motorists may only
pass them when, and only when, it is safe
to do so.
Using your thought pattern, when I am in my
18-wheeler and behind you in your motor car,
I can run you down because you are impeding
traffic.
Bob, you are a piece of work.
-----

Well "yours truly"

I always find it absolutely fascinating, when someone with extremely poor reading comprehension, such as yourself, reads something, and then goes off half-cocked, without really understanding much of anything.

I am obviously aware that bicycles are traffic, and clearly motorists in cars should not pass them when it isn’t safe. None of that has ANYTHING to do with the topic or issues, since the psycho driver was obviously able to pass the riders, and since the collision was the result of the psycho driver attacking the riders (by pulling in front of them and slamming his brakes).

Using “my pattern”? You don’t seem to have a vocabulary large enough to use the word “analogy”. I never once suggested that the psycho driver had a right to run down the riders, either from the front, or the rear.

So, we are left with your asshat ad hominem (look it up) verbal attack on me, which really, said nothing contradictory to anything I even remotely suggested.

No “yours truly”, I would say that YOU “are a piece of work”. Thanks for the entertainment, and please, get back to me when you are able to articulate something even remotely arguing against anything I stated.

[yours truly, Johnny Dollar]

Bob, bicycles are traffic. Motorists may only
pass them when, and only when, it is safe
to do so.
Using your thought pattern, when I am in my
18-wheeler and behind you in your motor car,
I can run you down because you are impeding
traffic.
Bob, you are a piece of work.

[bob]

I find it horrifying that these two guys were essentially attacked by the driver. They didn't deserve that. What bothers me is how much responsibility they may bear in bringing this incident upon themselves. They were reportedly blocking the road by not riding single file. And when the driver shouted an insult at them, one or both shouted back at him.

This incident is yet one more example of the all too common road rage. But, it also sheds a very negative light on inconsiderate bikers, or groups of bikers, who essentially take over a road, and impede the safe flow of traffic. Please, think of that the next time you are in a large group of bikers, riding 5 or 6 wide, riding much slower than the flow of traffic (blocking traffic). And don’t be so surprised when motorists honk at you to move over, or when they become upset when you act as-if it’s your right to ride in the middle of traffic at 20MPH.

[Michael Ballard]

I have noticed a lot of people saying the cyclists were tailgaiting. They weren't. This guy pulled around them, then slammed on the brakes. They were also on bicycles, not motorcycles. None of this is relevent though, as this person did use their car as a weapon.

[smi2le]

Is it against the law to stop your car if there is a motorcycle behind you? Were the motor cyclists tailgating?

[Stephen]

Bad URL in the link to the full story.

[Sean K]

Throw the book at him. He should also be charged with assault with a deadly weapon. If what was reported is true, then it is obvious he used his car to assault the bike riders. He could have killed someone. It's time old wealthy white men stopped getting a slap on the wrist every time they commit a crime that would land anyone else in jail. Give him at least two weeks to a month in jail. If he has any priors give him 2-6 months. If he's found guilty and serves no jail time the law-abiding public should be outraged. What if it was your spouse or kids he tried to harm with his vehicle?