Pushed too far, cyclist presses charges
Alleged 'prank' brings first prosecution under '3-foot law'
By Brandon Loomis
The Salt Lake Tribune
Article Last Updated: 03/02/2008 12:51:16 AM MST
Cycling advocate Jason Bultman makes his way home along... (Trent Nelson/The Salt Lake Tribune)
Jason Bultman was pedaling his bicycle up 500 East in Salt Lake City in November when a red pickup zoomed up beside him and a hand swiped across his back.
Startled, the all-seasons bicycle commuter feared he was so close to the truck that it would send him sprawling. Instead the truck veered away, the passenger withdrew inside and Bultman took down the license number for what would become the first reported prosecution of Utah's 2005 law requiring motorists, in most situations, to give cyclists a 3-foot buffer.
Police followed up with the driver and Salt Lake City prosecutors confirmed they filed charges under the 3-foot rule, adopted by the Utah Legislature in response to the 2004 death of University of Utah graduate student Josie Johnson. She died after being hit while cycling in Big Cottonwood Canyon.
"It's kind of interesting that you can actually prosecute someone for violating the 3-foot law," Bultman said. "[People] were saying it's unenforceable."
City prosecutor Sim Gill said his office filed the charge against a George Richard Young, 46, but attempts to find him and serve a summons for an arraignment earlier this month failed. The city will try again before issuing an arrest warrant, he said.
Attempts by The Salt Lake Tribune to reach Young at his last reported address were unsuccessful.
"Just because you happen to be in a motor vehicle doesn't mean you don't have a responsibility to operate in a way that respects everybody's rights to be in the roadway, including bicyclists," Gill said.
The charge is a misdemeanor with up to a possible $750 fine and 90 days in jail, though Gill said there's no minimum mandatory fine and the courts are untested on these matters.
Bultman said authorities gave him several options to charge the passenger, including assault. Instead, he opted for the 3-foot rule, figuring it was the driver who had endangered him by swerving too near.
"I was well off into the shoulder and was all of the sudden brushed," Bultman said. "The guy was hanging out the passenger-side window of the truck. I don't know how the mirror missed me."
If the driver and passenger taunted Bultman in the way he described, they chose the wrong cyclist. Not only was he aware of the new law, but he is president of the Salt Lake City Bicycle Collective. Plus, in 2004 he suffered a crushed ankle in a car-bicycle crash. "My side job in life is to try to educate people that bicycling is a great way to get around town."
Education, not revenge, led him to press charges for what he called a "botched prank" with likely no harm intended.
"Good for him," said another cycling advocate, John Weis, when he heard of Bultman's case. Weis was director of Johnson's graduate pathology program at the U. when she was killed, and he helped lobby for the 2005 legislation.
He had expected the law to raise awareness, but not necessarily draw prosecutions, he said.
"Even before we had the 3-foot law, we had a law that said you can't get too close to a bicyclist, and police told me they had never used it," Weis said.
The law is not easily prosecuted, acknowledged its sponsor, Rep. Roz McGee, D-Salt Lake City. But jailing people was never as important as making drivers more conscious of the necessary buffer, she said.
"Luckily, this incident did not result in bodily injury or death," said McGee. bloomis@sltrib.com
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* ROBERT GEHRKE contributed to this story.
Bultman said authorities gave him several options to charge the passenger, including assault. Instead, he opted for the 3-foot rule, figuring it was the driver who had endangered him by swerving too near.
Going for the lesser charge - when the police were willing to back him up on an assault charge - is a disservice to cyclists.
Yes, Id agree.....However, Im in shock because a PD actually
brought one of these to the fining stage. I wonder if even 100
of these citations have been issued in the whole country ?
to charge the passenger with assault you'd have to conclusively ID the passenger, I wonder if Bultman would actually be able to do that. Finding the registered owner of the vehicle is a lot easier, I would think.
Rocky: Hey Bullwinkle, we're in real trouble now!
Bullwinkle: Oh good, Rocky! I hate that artificial kind!
Yes, Id agree.....However, Im in shock because a PD actually
brought one of these to the fining stage. I wonder if even 100
of these citations have been issued in the whole country ?
I've gotten 2 prosecuted in Wisconsin, but my average isn't good. I've complained to authorities about 20 or so in the past 5 years. But I keep calling them. I'm not going away any time soon.
Going for the lesser charge - when the police were willing to back him up on an assault charge - is a disservice to cyclists.
In most cases, I would strongly agree. This time, only prosecuting the 3 foot violation may bring far more awareness of the law and future benifit for cyclist.
Prosecute both, and the assault charge is of little interest to the press (nothing new or unusual) and so the 3 foot violation also gets ignored.
I think what you find most in the failure to prosecute on many charges are lack of supportable evidence or witness' that actually give written statements or follow up in the court system for the complainant. I give you there are a few cops out there that would rather do nothing all day there are ones who are willing to do their job. If you make a complaint you must be able to substantiate it. Merely saying it happened is just the start. If you make an allegation against another person you MUST be able to prove it to an unbiased person in order to get a conviction. That is usually a judge or JP. While you know it happened and I may believe you you still must support your allegation. I wish there were more prosecutions for this violation. Absolutely ! However when you claim it happened to you it must be proved. If a case is not viable it is not viable.
As I have said before I strongly believe that when a person either gets a new drivers license or renews one he should be required to pass a mandatory bicycle safety section before the license is issued. While it won't stop everything it is a start.
The democracy will cease to exist when you take away from those who are willing to work and give to those who would not.
Thomas Jefferson
"It's kind of interesting that you can actually prosecute someone for violating the 3-foot law," Bultman said. "[People] were saying it's unenforceable."
It probably would be....unless the driver/passenger in question is actually stupid enough to slap the cyclist on the back. Without physical evidence (like a big red hand-shaped welt on your back or video of the idiot buzzing you) how would you prove it?
Fortunately there are drivers and passengers dumb enough to provide said evidence.
"Everyone is entitled to an opinion" is only half-right.
to charge the passenger with assault you'd have to conclusively ID the passenger, I wonder if Bultman would actually be able to do that. Finding the registered owner of the vehicle is a lot easier, I would think.
This is very true. It would be a logical reason to go for the lesser charge.
"Real wars of words are harder to win. They require thought, insight, precision, articulation, knowledge, and experience. They require the humility to admit when you are wrong. They recognize that the dialectic is not about making us look at you, but about us all looking together for the truth."
I've gotten 2 prosecuted in Wisconsin, but my average isn't good. I've complained to authorities about 20 or so in the past 5 years. But I keep calling them. I'm not going away any time soon.
I know a member that lives in SLC that has a long ponytail. He was once slapped on the ass while riding by someone that assumed he was a she.
This will make Donna giggle uncontrollably.
Brian is correct.
"Real wars of words are harder to win. They require thought, insight, precision, articulation, knowledge, and experience. They require the humility to admit when you are wrong. They recognize that the dialectic is not about making us look at you, but about us all looking together for the truth."
to charge the passenger with assault you'd have to conclusively ID the passenger, I wonder if Bultman would actually be able to do that. Finding the registered owner of the vehicle is a lot easier, I would think.
Good point. But since the police were willing to support an assault charge, I figured they had gotten a confession from the driver or there was some other compelling reason not to brush this off as a "he said, she said" - but you can never know for sure with the level of detail in these kinds of articles.
I've gotten 2 prosecuted in Wisconsin, but my average isn't good. I've complained to authorities about 20 or so in the past 5 years. But I keep calling them. I'm not going away any time soon.
My local police department in Mount Horeb, WI told me that the 3 foot law didn't exist. I now have a card with the law on it but hope to not need it again. I hope they checked after my call but I doubt it.
My local police department in Mount Horeb, WI told me that the 3 foot law didn't exist. I now have a card with the law on it but hope to not need it again. I hope they checked after my call but I doubt it.
I've been told everything from "the law doesn't exist" to "I have discretion as to what laws I enforce" and just about everything you could imagine in between.
Bottom line is know your rights. I too carry a copy of the state statutes in my seat bag, although I can probably quote the important ones from memory.
It's not hard to find the laws for your area, just google your state, or city and bike laws, or statutes. It might take a bit of reading, but it's worth the time.
Good luck
Bikesafer
Jeff
What is your setup... rear looking and forward looking?
So do we have to ride around with video cams to get what the law grants?
Has it come to that?
It's always come down to that. You need evidence of wrongdoing, whether it's video or eye witness.
I ride with handle bar video cam (ATC 2k) for precisely that reason. If I get whacked badly, I don't want there to be much question as to who is at fault.
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