A child on a bike was struck & killed in San Jose
 

San Jose sixth-grader fatally struck by SUV on her way home from school.

http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_9565948


This bites. Bigtime.

Awwww crap! :mad:

That just sucks! On the last day of school too.

"How could you not notice a kid riding a bike home from school?"

Gawd not another one... as a father of two girls it hits home really close. I can't even imagine the pain that the family is going through over her senseless death. God rest her soul.

Reading that news report is very upsetting. :(:mad:
The worst thing is its very likely that nothing will happen to the driver.

I live half a block away from an elementary school inside a neighborhood. There is a posted 25 mph speed limit but drivers often speed through in excess of 35+ mph. Its especially worst when the parents are speeding in in the morning and the afternoon to drop off and pick up their kids. Morons, I tell you.

I don't want to jump to any conclusions here, so ignore the following:

[jumping to conclusions]She was probably on her mobile, oblivious to anything beyond her conversation.[/jumped]

The Mercury News link is severely not working for me, but gah, how awful. There's both an elementary and a high school only a few blocks from me and each other, and I'm surprised there isn't more havoc between the two.

For a few seconds there, I thought you had the darkest sense of humor imaginable, until I realized you were talking about the driver, and not the kid. But yeah, it wouldn't surprise me in the least if the driver was, you know, thinking of more important things at the time. :rolleyes:

Yes ... the driver ...

This is every parent's worst nightmare.

:(

I have nothing else... am gonna go and hug my girls now.

I live in the neighborhood where this happened and my daughters went to Hoover. I'm surprised that there wasn't a crossing guard at that intersection. The speed limit is posted at 25mph. I've ridden that bike lane many times. This is just a senseless tragedy.

I ride pass that everyday. I take Park home from USC to Downtown SJ.

So sad.

I used to live near an elementary school, and I swear the drivers around the school were the worst.. especially in the mornings and then the afternoons. Too many parents, in too much of hurry. This is the kind of thing you think "might" happen when you see SUV"s flying around school zones dumping off a pile of kids and then hitting the gas before the last kid out is totally on the ground..The it does, and it still just makes your stomach bottom out.

and there was a bike lane? damn, they gotta get rid of those things they dont work and drivers mentally block out any cyclists riding on them.

I dont know I am just upset over this and looking for something to blame I guess.

I couldn't agree more with that statement.


I unfortunately have seen an 8 year old kid run down by a drunk driver at 9:00 in the morning. Still sickens me to even think about it. Senseless killings of innocent kids is something that nobody should tolerate no matter what the circumstances are.

Aiigh! How could they _not_ cite her? At the very least, the driver FAILED TO YIELD the right of way since she was making the left turn, whether she saw the girl or not. "I didn't see her" is NOT an excuse.

This is sickening and makes me worry about my kids that much more.

"With her daughter watching and waiting for her at Hoover Middle School, Adriana Fierro De Marin's Ford Bronco made a tragic turn in the quiet Rose Garden neighborhood."

Amazing. This is the lead to the story. The DRIVER didn't turn the vehicle into the girl, the BRONCO apparently steered itself and hit the bicycle the girl was riding. The reporter then goes on to describe how distraught the driver is over the collision.
Is this the same reporter that wrote about the crash on Stevens Canyon Road? Sympathy for the distraught driver that runs over people on bikes?

I teach at a middle school and yes, parents intent on their own child's safety are not always looking out for other people's children. I bike commute and for my own safety I get there well before the parents arrive.

My heart goes out to Breanna's family and friends.

Wow, this is just horrible. I'm wondering if I'll ever let my kids ride their bikes to school now.

JB

So terribly sad. :(

+1 don't know what more to say. Tragic.

I'm with JB, the missus and I have had several discussions about our kids and when they'll be old enough to ride on the road, with or without me. Scary stuff.

I'm in the same boat. Without understanding how the vehicular traffic system works, it's hard for kids to anticipate the movements of the cars on the roads. Even though they they might demonstrate competence in operating a bike in general, I'm finding they don't typically demonstrate enough competence on the road with traffic. Maybe I'm just paranoid.

Latest update: The driver is not a licensed driver! AAAIIIIIGGGGHHHH!
http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_9576185

The determination on whether to file charges will be made by the Santa Clara County District Attorney's Office once police wrap up their investigation, a process that could take up to six months.

Driving without a license in California is a misdemeanor, Sullivan said. No citations were issued in this case.


Six months??? How do you not charge someone at the scene of a homicide who doesn't have a license? I don't care how distraught she was... she should have been hauled off to jail in handcuffs and processed before they let her go... instead she plays the pity angle and goes to church and cries for the media - who also reported Breanna wasn't wearing a helmet... more blame shifting... as if being dragged by a Bronco was incidental. This sounds a lot like the case in Danville last year, I forgot what resulted from that one.

Wonder if she has insurance.

Adriana Fierro De Marin, child murderer.

This is the same DA's office as Steven's Creek.

My heart goes out to Breanna's family. So sad day.


Mercury New sure has the worst rap sheet when it comes to reporting accidents involving bicycles. Letters to the editor are on their way already.

Also:

There will be a Town Hall Meeting on Bicycle Safety Crisis on the 28th of June.
This from the SVBC Web site:

Town Hall Meeting on Our Bicycle Safety Crisis

Submitted by maiki on June 9, 2008 - 8:13pm.
Here are the facts: Over the past 10 years, nearly 200 Bay Area bicyclists have been killed and more than 25,000 injured, according to the California Highway Patrol. During that same time, Santa Clara County had the highest number of fatalities and injuries per capita compared to the nine other Bay Area counties! Those numbers are rising at an alarming rate, both locally and nationally. What can we do to make the roads safe for everyone?
Bicycling advocates say that one solution is to raise motorists’ awareness that bicyclists have the right to use the roadways and to firmly enforce existing laws against drivers involved in collisions with bicyclists. Several states have passed laws requiring drivers to give bicyclists a minimum three-foot berth as they pass. However, an attempt last year by Assemblyman Pedro Nava to pass a similar law in California was unsuccessful. What are the alternatives?
Join this urgent town hall meeting to discuss the ways to reduce the number of bicycle injuries and fatalities in our communities.
Saturday, June 28, 2008
1:00 PM
San Jose City Council Chambers
200 East Santa Clara Street
San Jose, CA






I would encourage every one who possibly can to attend the meeting.

Sadly and ironically, this might lead to a raised awareness about bicycling safety, even more than the Stevens Creek tragedy since a child was involved. gah.

Our neighbor's 8th grade son was hit/killed by a drunk in a SUV just after stepping off a school bus. I never, ever, ever want to experience pain like that again. I still see his mother's face after hearing the news clear as day and it was 3 years ago. It changed my outlook on a lot of things. Makes me keep an even tighter leash on my own kids. News like this always makes me feel sick inside. Hell with cars today!!!