Doctor sentenced to 5 years in prison for assaulting bicyclists in Brentwood

A doctor convicted of assaulting two bicyclists by slamming on his car brakes after a confrontation on a narrow Brentwood road was sentenced today to five years in prison.

Christopher Thompson, wearing dark blue jail scrubs, wept as he apologized to the injured cyclists shortly before he was sentenced.

"I would like to apologize deeply, profoundly from the bottom of my heart," he told them, his right hand cuffed to a court chair.

Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Scott T. Millington called the case a "wake-up call" to motorists and cyclists and urged local government to provide riders with more bike lanes. He said he believed that Thompson had shown a lack of remorse during the case and that the victims were particularly vulnerable while riding their bicycles.

The case against Thompson, 60, has drawn close scrutiny from bicycle riders around the country, many of whom viewed the outcome as a test of the justice system's commitment to protecting cyclists.

Millington said he did not take into account more than 270 e-mails and letters from cyclists that were filed with the court urging a tough sentence.

The July 4, 2008, crash also highlighted simmering tensions between cyclists and residents along Mandeville Canyon Road, the winding five-mile residential street where the crash took place.

One cyclist was flung face-first into the rear window of Thompson's red Infiniti, breaking his front teeth and nose and cutting his face. The other cyclist slammed into the sidewalk and suffered a separated shoulder.

At his sentencing hearing at the county's airport branch court, Thompson cited the Bible in urging cyclists and residents of Mandeville Canyon to try to resolve their differences peacefully.

"If my incident shows anything it's that confrontation leads to an escalation of hostilities," Thompson said.

Thompson, a former emergency room physician who described the crash as a terrible accident, testified during his trial last year that he and other Mandeville Canyon residents were upset that some cyclists rode dangerously and acted disrespectfully toward residents and motorists along the street, a popular route for bike riders.

On the day of the crash, Thompson said he was driving down the road on his way to work when several cyclists swore at him and flipped him off as he called on them to ride single file. He said he stopped his car to take a photo to identify the riders and never intended to hurt anyone.

But the cyclists said the doctor was acting aggressively from the start. They said he honked loudly from behind them and passed by dangerously close as they moved to ride single file before he pulled in front and braked hard.

A police officer told jurors that shortly after the crash that Thompson said he slammed on his brakes in front of the riders to "teach them a lesson."

Prosecutors said Thompson had a history of run-ins with bike riders, including a similar episode four months before the crash when two cyclists told police that the doctor tried to run them off the road and braked suddenly in front of them. Neither of the riders was injured.

Jurors convicted Thompson in November of mayhem; assault with a deadly weapon, his car; battery with serious injury; and reckless driving causing injury.

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-- Jack Leonard at the L.A. County airport courthouse

Photo: Christopher Thompson weeps as a judge sentences him to five years in prison for assaulting two bicyclists by slamming on his car brakes after a confrontation on a narrow Brentwood road. Credit: Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times

Comments

[Julian]

I don't agree with what Thompson did. However, I am sick of cyclists riding in the road as though they are cars. A bike is not a car and therefore cyclists should be riding single file along the side of the road. If you want to ride in the middle of the road then get in your car. If you want to ride your bike then ride on the side of the road. I'm a cyclist myself and I think many cyclists are aggressive and asking for trouble. Like I said I don't agree with what Thompson did, but why weren't the cyclists riding in single file down Mandeville Canyon? If you were walking down the street would you walk in the middle of the road or on the side?

[Mihai Peteu]

5 years is not insanity, if anything, it's not enough. Your judgement shows just how desensitized our society has become to motor vehicle accidents. Nowadays, it's almost as if you can get away with murder if the weapon was a car instead of a gun. This needs to change.

[Thinker]

Interesting....

I wonder how Orange COunty case will turn out. I have not been watching it, but there was similar incident when woman slammed the breaks and injured bicyclist. She took off after the incident, but bystanders got her license place and car description. She turned out to be an attorney.

I'm avid bicycle rider and ride a lot. I'm always courteous to cars and wave to drivers when they pass me by or let me pass through on the stop sign.

I think it goes both ways. Rule are made for both sides and we need to be aware of each other existence.

On the side note, there is black SUV riding in Santa Monica mountains that harasses bikers. Several were driven off the road. I hope that guy gets similar sentence when he gets caught.

[Jason]

5 years for a deliberate assault that nearly killed someone is a light sentence. Especially when the good doctor Thompson has a history of similar incidents. Given his comments over the past year, his tears are insincere and more likely due to a sobering realization that he’s going to be sitting in a cement box for a long time.
As annoying as some of you find bike riders, remember that they still have the right to be on the road. It’s simply a fact that drivers are obligated under the law to share the road with cyclists and this case once again proved that. Moreover, those of you who complain that cyclists on the road impede your progress and travel slower than the speed limit need to remember that a speed limit is a maximum allowable speed. Not a minimum.
If nothing else, this case should remind us that it is wrong to try and hurt someone else and we ALL need to be more courteous.

[bicyclists]

i'm pretty happy about this sentence. not too heavy. not too light. if you threaten a bicyclists life, you should go to jail.

i know that there are rude bicyclists out there, but i can't imagine anyone getting away with almost killing someone because they were rude. you are in a car. just drive away.

[Mike]

First off, I'm a cyclist. That being said, if bike riders wish to be taken seriously on the road, we need to follow the laws of the road. Every single day I see riders on the street who don't stop at stop signs or signals, but we're the first to cry foul when someone hits us.

[Joemamabush]

If you give a biker some room to the right, make their life a delight . Share the road......bikers drafting could meet the same disaster.

[Astonished]

No remorse until he was faced with prison time. I love it. All this because he couldn't control his temper. Makes you wonder about his bed-side manners when he was a practicing physician! And actually, while a rear-end collision is usually the fault of the second car (the one doing the hitting), if it can be proved, as in this case, that the person ahead of you perposfullly caused you to run into them, it can be construed as an attempted manslaughter. You should also remember that with our lax justice system, he will do very little time behind bars and be back out in about 18 months (if that long).

[Jersey]

Cars aren't allowed to drive much under the speed limit because it is not safe, so I don't understand why a bicycle is allowed to which is even more dangerous. There should be laws against bike riding in any street. What's next, skateboards in the middle of Ventura Blvd? So, why is jaywalking illegal?

[Jane Green]

thankfully these cyclists are healthly and in control of their faculties......I worry about the patients he had a vendetta against.....some sort of bias.......we will never know how they were treated. Who will speak for them?

[Ben]

I dont condone what the doctor did but I do understand. It is extremely frustrating driving behind a cyclists who DOESNT want to share the road on a daily basis.

[Eric Williams]

I think he should have been sentenced to 5 years of working in a free clinic for minimum wage,helping people with no insurance, or money. This would have been better for our society. The prisons are full. A stiff fine, as well. He's got the money. On the other hand, who has the right of way on the sidewalk? Riders are always speeding past me when I walk. I was hit by a bicyclist when I was walking in front of my house in Venice years ago. What does the law say about this?

[Daoudmac]

I have numerous times, with bike lanes in clear view, been cut off by cyclists then flipped off because I honked at them which they clearly deserved. I have experienced rude, belligerent and plain unsafe riders. Does this mean all riders are guilty of this? No. It seems from what I have read here this area is a bone of contention and seems to have a control issue via bike against car. I think all involved are responsible for the actions that led up to this sad and sorry affair. I think his sentence was a bit over the top and he was made the scapegoat for a larger problem but cyclists still need to heed the call just as motorists, we need to be mindful and respective of each others space, time etc when riding either bike or car.

[Chuck Wavy Dean]

As an avid recreational cyclist who has ridden the streets of the San Fernando Valley and the Westside for many years, I applaud this verdict and sentance. Dr. Thompson's conduct is unacceptable and someone could have easily been killed. I have been forunate to never have had a serious crash in all my years of riding, in part because I try to be extra courteous to the drivers I encounter and also because I have not run into someone like Dr. Thompson. I trust the good doctor has learned his lesson and it will serve as a lesson to all other motorists that they need to share the road peacefully with us cyclists.

[dee]

I'm not a cyclist-lover, but it seems just, even lenient. He'd done this before and was reported--of all people, an ER MD knows how severe cycling injuries can be, and he knowingly put these people at risk. How do you 'honk' your horn softly? My car horn can give little 'puffs' if I tap it quickly with the heel of my hand--most people can hear that (though if they are i-podding they may not)...it's different from a 'blast' from leaning on the horn. This shouldn't be seen as a war between cycles and autos, but as one man who decided to take the law into his own hands to injure, perhaps to cause brain damage or even kill, people whose behavior irritated him. By that standard, most of us could go out and try to maim or kill just about anyone who gets in our way when we have our 'cranky-pants' on...the verdict shows that acting out rage against others is illegal.

[Axel Esselmann]

I own and use my car frequently, but I also ride my bike often, not just for recreational use. When driving my car I am annoyed when I have to slow down because there is a vehicle (bike, car, whatever) driving below the speed limit in front of me and often I forget that a speed limit is just that: a speed LIMIT, not a minimum speed that every vehicle on the rode has to follow. How much of an inconvenience is it to slow down for a couple of minutes to assure the safety of a more vulnerable traffic participant, which a cyclist definitely is.

My contribution to this debate is the following: Please take the time and calculate how much time you loose if you have to slow down to 15 miles per hour in a 35 miles per hour zone for a duration of 5 minutes. Then compare that to how much you value the life or health of a stranger. Also keep in mind that the above example is most likely and exaggeration, you are probably not held up for five minutes. Ok, maybe you were provoked and inconvenienced by the cyclist, but how much of an inconvenience it must be to the family of a cyclist who looses their daughter, husband or mother, because they took two minutes and fifty-one seconds out of your day.

I understand how people on either side of the debate feel, because I find myself on either side. This is not a matter of one side backing down or giving in: Los Angeles needs more designated bike lanes for this issue to be resolved once and for all. Until then, please keep in mind that when driving a car, you are not only faster, but also less vulnerable!

[Res Ipsa Loquitur]

A doctor slams on his breaks, two bikers suffer relatively minor injuries, and the doctor gets five years in prison. George Bush lies to the American public, kills tens of thousands of Iraqis in an illegal war, marches thousands of U.S. troops off to be maimed or killed, drives the economy into a deep recession, and yet he isn't even brought up on charges. This world is one big sick joke.

[Steve S.]

My sense is the doctor is a very luck man. He got 5 years for attempted murder.

[Paul]

When you use your car as a weapon, it's attempted murder, or at least it should be.

Five years isn't a heavy sentence for that at all. It would be different if he'd just pulled over and started something mano a mano. Jim and others who feel sorry for this poor, poor attempted murderer, I suggest you send him some vaseline in the clink.

[Linda Severs]

No wonder California is bankrupt partially because of it's huge prison population. Five years is an outrageous sentence when the community would have been better served if the doctor had been sentenced to providing healthcare for those without it.

[JJ]

Thompson's actions were wrong, but I think the sentence was far too harsh. He acted as he did because he had no recourse against the cyclists who had previously provoked him on that street.

As a motorist AND a cyclist, I have seen all manner of rudeness on both sides. No question about it, there are motorists who cut me off, yell at me, and sometimes even toss things out of their windows. It's infuritating and scary. But there are also cyclists who hog lanes and zip through intersections, and even some who become violent when called on their behavior.

I think one way to level the playing field would be to require bicyclists to have readable license plates attached to their cycles or the backs of their attire. If such a requirement had been in effect, Thompson could have videotaped the behavior of the cyclists who had acted badly, and had the police intervene. He would have had recourse, and might not have lost control that day.

Cars can be readily identified by their license plates, and drivers can be arrested for endangering cyclists. Thompson isn't the only example. I once was able to succeed in having a motorist arrested and charged with vehicular assault for forcing a cyclist off the road. (Six months, suspended.)

But there is no equivalent recourse for pedestrians or drivers who are harassed, threatened, or injured by cyclists. From what I've seen while driving, too many cyclists think stop and yield signs are advisory, and that crosswalks are to be occupied at a pedestrian's own risk. Police who observe cyclists ignoring the law seem to agree. At the very least, the rules of the road ought to be enforced equally.

As a cyclist, the actions of my obnoxious and irresponsible brethren -- the ones who drove Thompson over the edge -- bother me just as much as the actions of obnoxious and dangerous motorists.

[DBC]

Dennis Manuel:" If someone brakes too quickly on the highway and you ram into them, it's your fault. "

Not if you pass them, pull in front of them and slam on your brakes and intend to cause them to swerve or run into you. In Toronto Canada, someone who did this on the highway caused a vehicle to swerve and flip over, killing the driver was arrested and charged with criminal negligence causing death and dangerous driving causing death.

No different than reversing into someone behind you. Its just common sense ...

[frank parr]

I am glad that this fine citizen will do some hard time. As an avid cyclist who rides conservatively, I am tired of being harrassed by drivers who demonstrate reckless disregard for the safety of cyclists.

[Steve]

I'm a physician, cyclist, motorist and a victim of a similar vehicular assault one year ago where someone tried to run me off the road then stopped immediately in front of me causing me to crash into them. I therefore have a unique perspective on the LA case and could go on and on - I'll be brief and say I think the penalty was appropriate, maybe a little stiff. What I'd like to see is more widespread conviction of motorists who do this sort of thing every day including the guy that made me wreck. He ended up with no citation whatsoever since he lied in his version of what happened.

[injustice]

5 years is outrageous!! Come on people! People who put babies in trash cans get less time. Rapists and murderers get less time. This was an accident! Nobody died! You have got to be kidding me. Injustice. I am ashamed of our justice system. Hope you all like paying your taxes for nothing.