Got hit by an SUV today...

[banerjek]

If it is against the BF rules or something, then never mind, but so others in your area can be on the lookout, what color/model year was the Excursion? What was the license plate number?

Did you get other information when the police came? What was her name? Address? Phone number?
As much as I'm hoping to hear that the woman gets booked with an assault charge and the Excursion has to be sold to pay the bills, providing this sort of info sounds like a recipie for trouble. Better to let iamtim and the cops do their thing rather than encourage vigilante justice.

[iamtim]

so others in your area can be on the lookout

I'm loathe to post any real personal information for fear of a harassment counter-suit until I talk to a lawyer.

That said, in the interest of giving a "heads up" to my fellow cyclists so they can give her a wide berth, I will relay that it was a newer model Excursion, burgandy in color, with handicapped plates and plate frames that read, "Nanna's Monster Truck". Cute, eh? Pff. It also has a brand new rear-view mirror on the passenger side.

The "accident" took place in La Habra, California, which is about as north as you can get and still be inside of the Orange County borders. From what I understand, the driver lives in Whittier, California.

[Bikepacker67]

Not very Grandmotherly of her, eh?

[BeTheChange]

Did the cop hear her say "I was teaching you a lesson"? I would call him when you get a chance and see if he did. Cause if so it would look a lot better coming from the cop in his report than from your wife in court. Sorry to hear about this man. Hope it all works out and none of your injuries are chronic.

[spandexwarrior]

Hey, Iamtim- I did some digging for bicycle lawyers in California. Found this one link for a law firm which handles bike accidents which has offices in Southern California:http://www.personalinjurylawcal.com/
The funny thing is that they also handle SUV roll-over cases. There is just one bike lawyer in my area, but if you didn't know, I thought I'd share with you that there are lawyers who are listed as handling or specializing in bike cases. Just google California bike lawyer(s) for more hits.

[trackhub]

I'm also glad that you are relatively unharmed. That could have been a lot worse, as other members have noted already.

The fact that she did this with malice, judging by your description of the event, points to a much deeper, much more serious problem in this society. But, that's anothet topic I guess.

Any chance that intersection was monitored by video cameras?

Question: Should this person be granted the legal privilege of driving?

[LittleBigMan]

Anyway, two witnesses immediately came up to me and told me they saw the whole thing, and gave their reports to the police when they got there. A report was filed, and I have every intention of following this up as much and as hard as I can. There has to be some attempted murder or endangerment charges in there somewhere.
I know I'm late in my response, but Iamtim, I'm really saddened that you were assaulted. For the sake of all cyclists (and pedestrians, nay, ALL people,) this lady needs to be held accountable for what she did to you. She is a menace.

[merlinextraligh]

An attorney who doesnt know the difference between wreckless and reckless. However it seems like sound advice.
No, One that has a secretary to proof his actual work and can't type.

[merlinextraligh]

Seriously? I'm not a lawyer, just an educated citizen, but c'mon. She yelled at him before hitting him that he didn't belong on the road, and then she got defiant when he re-asserted his right to the road after the crash, attempting to leave the scene. I know if I were a juror on this case (even if I weren't a cyclist) I would see that as intent, not to mention showing recklessness. Assault and Reckless Endangerment, minimum. And even if she misjudged her mirror and didn't intend to hit him, she clearly intended to come close, which around here qualifies as Menacing, still a fairly serious crime. Hell, last year I DID sit on a jury that convicted a guy of assault for an incident with lesser injuries, no weapon, less evidence of intent and only one witness.

.
1) consider you're only hearing one side of this story. Even if the op's account is accurate, what a jury may hear at the end of the day may be somewhat different. 2) jurors, cops, and prosecutors all drive cars, most don't ride; their filter for this information will be different than ours. 3) I didn't say don't try to bring criminal charges.I said it may be difficult to get the prosecutor interested because of proof issues, particularly if the cops aren't excited about pursuing it. The prosecutor has to answer to the police all the time about the cases they choose to devot e resources to, they only have to deal with the OP once. I'm all for trying to prosecute this woman, I just wouldn't waste my own money on hiring a lawyer to help push those charges.

[merlinextraligh]

Your neck hurts A LOT.
You NEED to go to the doctor.
YOUR NECK HURTS A LOT.
You need to call a lawyer.
Today, seriously, it does. Luckily, I work for a chiropractic/acupuncture college, and was in our private practice office today getting a full checkup under a new P.I. case.

I had to leave work and come home after only being at work for a few hours (beyond the time in the health center) because getting up and sitting back down (which I have to do frequently -- I'm an I.T Manager) was *killing* me. Nearly brought me to tears once or twice.

We're looking for a lawyer.

I'd like to elaborate on my point about the personal cost of litigation. It drags on for a long time. Plaintiffs tend to become fixated on the lawsuit, rather on getting over their injuries and putting it past them. Your privacy will be completely invaded. Every medical record you've ever had will be fair game. all your employment records and school records can be obtained. Independent medial exams can be ordered, and you may be surveilled. You'll lose time form work or school for depositions and exams. Realize that if you expect to get much for your pain and suffering, that will be inconsistent with going out and riding your bike in the next few days. This dynamic tends to make plaintiffs focus on what hurts rather than focusing on getting better. If you dwell on your injuries, its easy for even honest people to magnify and prolong their problems. Conversely, if you reach a quick reasonable settlement with her insurance carrier, you can begin to put this past you.

I'd give it a little time and see how you're doing. If it looks like you will need substantial ongoing treatment, have permanent significant residuals, and the insurance carrier is not reasonable, then you may need to retain counsel and pursue litigation. But if we're talking a few days or week's soreness, you really do need to consider the downsides of litigation.

And you may not net the kind of money you might think. Typical lawyer cut is 33 to 40%. (A fact you should consider before retaining counsel.)You have to pay back the medical providers (even if insurance pays the providers, the insurance carrier usually has a lien to recover against your settlement or judgement.) In a small personal injury settlement it is not at all rare for the plaintiff to net less than 50% of the settlement. And by the way regardless of what you may think of chiropractic treatment, juries typically do not give significant awards in cases where the only treatment is chiro.
Plaintiff's lawyers don't have an incentive to tell you the downsides and personal costs to litigation. After the fact I think you will find a large number of plaintiffs who wish they had not pursued litigation, and wished they had considered the above factors before hand. Ultimately you know your own condition and what you need to do. I'm just suggesting the sue the ***** sentiment in this thread is a little too simplistic.

[iamtim]

And you may not net the kind of money you might think.

Money is not my reason for considering litigation. I'm not looking for a red cent beyond what it cost to fix my bike, get a new helmet, a new shirt, wages for time off and my medical costs.

I'm considering litigation because she should either not be driving or should be educated about, and taught tolerance of, cyclists. I'm more afraid for other cyclists she might come across than I am interested in making a bunch of money.

I got away with my life and relatively minor injuries. The next rider might not be so lucky.

I just haven't yet determined if I have legal ground to pursue such punishment, and if so, if I can afford it or not. Right now I'm waiting for the police report and to find out what she was cited for.

[KrisPistofferson]

Seriously, if I was in the same situation, I'd want this lady prosecuted to the full extent the law allows, so she would know that adults don't act this way, and to send a message to all the other sociopathic road ragers who are tempted to do the same. Making the OP out to be greedy is pretty freakin' dense, and you guys should be ashamed.

[sentinel]

You civil suit will have nothing to do with her having a driver's license. That is determined by your state's BMV. As far as educating her, good luck, she will be so resentful, she won't hear a thing that is said.

[GlowBoy]

Your privacy will be completely invaded. Every medical record you've ever had will be fair game. all your employment records and school records can be obtained. Independent medial exams can be ordered, and you may be surveilled. You'll lose time form work or school for depositions and exams. I'd give it a little time and see how you're doing. If it looks like you will need substantial ongoing treatment, have permanent significant residuals, and the insurance carrier is not reasonable, then you may need to retain counsel and pursue litigation. But if we're talking a few days or week's soreness, you really do need to consider the downsides of litigation.
Agreed. A civil suit is not worth it if you recover from your injuries quickly. The longer it takes, the more bills you're going to rack up, the more you'll have to fight the insurance companies, and the more benefit you'll get from having a lawyer. Besides trying to minimize your pain and make it look like you were in the wrong, the insurance companies have other tricks they'll try to pull on you to deny care or reduce your benefit ... even when they know they're wrong to do it. They also know not everyone is going to fight, so they enrich their bottom line off those people, and back down to the ones who decide to actually demand what's right. A lawyer is going to take a significant cut of any ultimate settlement, but without a lawyer you won't get much of a settlement anyway, so it is probably worth it if you have long-term injuries.

And by the way regardless of what you may think of chiropractic treatment, juries typically do not give significant awards in cases where the only treatment is chiro.
Also agreed! Find a good MD (orthopedist) in your area and get examined right away. Stupid but true ... both the diagnostic opinions and the treatment carry several times the weight with juries (and therefore insurance companies seeking to settle) if they are backed up by the letters "MD" rather than "DC." Not to put down chiropractors at all -- they're spinal specialists and I've found their treatments to be very helpful for my spinal injuries. Still, my treatments worked much better when combined with (1) physical therapy supervised by an orthopedist and (2) acupuncture ... and in the eyes of the legal system that approach carries a lot more weight.

[LittleBigMan]

Yes, about the litigation, there are downsides. I sued a man for crushing my driveway with his heavy equipment. He and the crane operator lied and said they warned me the driveway would be "crushed into gravel."

It was my word against theirs. I lost.

If you have police reports on your side, it means everything.

[Dchiefransom]

Find cycling organizations in your area and see if they can help put pressure on the D.A. to bring charges. We had a problem at our crit, even with permits and all the paperwork, and it took some "persuasion" to finally get the D.A. to charge a guy that ran into the middle of the pack on purpose at a crit.