Originally Posted by FBinNY

No comment on the sentence, but one on the drivers excuse/explanation.

We hear this too often, "I passed close because there was too much oncoming traffic to move over farther". Unless your brakes have failed, and you had to choose the lesser of evils, this isn't any excuse at all. The simple remedy is to slow down and wait for an opportunity to pass safely, just as you would if there was a deer carcass in the road.

It galls me that cyclists and other slower road users get less respect and courtesy that roadkill or other inanimate obstructions. This and other specifics of how to share the road safely are good fodder for PSAs.

If I were the judge, I would have replaced the community service with a fine large enough to finance production of a PSA starring him with the theme being "I killed someone because I was too impatient to wait a few seconds for an opportunity to pass safely".