john.b

Responsible in part for taking the company legit.

https://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/lo...235004361.html

I suspect it's going to be hard to sweep this one under the proverbial rug.

phoebeisis

This guy was wealthy and connected,so this cities insurance company will end up with a maxed settlement.
Someone-the cop probably-will be punished-
but the real cause-cops distracted by various electronic crap-won't be addressed.
1:30 in the afternoon- 25 mph speed limit-meaning 10-15mp-15-20 fps overtaking speed if they were same direction
good visibility-
Only reasonable explanations
1)He was not looking at the road
2)Bike rider suddenly swerved in front of him-
Cop was checking computer texting cell phoning- just no other reasonable explanation on such a low speed road-he was looking for a LONG time-many seconds

Jseis 

Here in rural Wa when I'm making my monthly 300 mile round trip to our office I cruise 101 at 56-57 and frequently get passed on the long remote sections by state police cruisers. As the state police academy is but Marley 1 + hours away from some sections I drive we get the occasional trainee candidate too. So I've started watching them after they pass, particularly on the long straight sections. Sure enough 50% of the time time, when they are 1/8 of a mile ahead, they'll drift right or left over the centerline/fog line and that's key tapping drift/dialdrift or whatever. Pretty obvious (they've likely run my plates & wondering why I just don't get on the GT's throttle).

prooftheory

Unless the family decides to bring this up in a lawsuit. One can only hope that a well-connected and wealthy family might do so in the interest of public safety.

Jseis 

One other thing I notice in the modern incarnation of bike lanes and vehicular travel lanes and that is the snafu's that result when designing them to fit either existing rights of way or sidewalks/curbs/green ways/power poles/intersections/turn pockets/medians and etc. Sure, you can deviate from design standards and take a 12' vehicular travel to 10' in low speed areas, you can paint and stripe bike lanes till the cows come home but that painted line doesn't mean squat if a truck and pup at 9' wide (or more) is rolling up in a curve or a driver fades into a narrowing lane and well, there you are. A combination of factors relating to speed, inattention, design, etc. probably aligned into one of those damnable situations where the cyclists gets hit. One of the reasons I'm an advocate for automated vehicles and/or those with ped/bike radar. It's coming to that because we've too many in-vehicle distractions and a growing trend/use of disparate speed vehicle use on rights of way AND and an aging population who thinks they can safely operate a vehicle (any vehicle). This is no excuse for an officer's inattention. But society's solution is trending towards taking motor vehicle driving responsibility away and giving it to a computer.

I-Like-To-Bike

What does your amazing Crystal Balls tell you will be the final score be for the Auburn-Florida State game? I could use the inside knowledge that you Carnack the Magnificants possess.

phoebeisis

Who cares-Auburn BEAT ALABAMA- broke all their redneck tree killing hearts FOREVER-and now Nick Saban will dump them
-Tusc vs Austin easy choice-
so my heart will be doubly warmed for months just because Alabama LOST in a heart breaking way!
And will soon lose their coach-but not after he promises to stay at RedNeck Central- then he will leave of course-why would anyone WANT to live in Tusc?
Yes nothing I like better than Alabama LOSING like that.
Only the Saints winning another Super Bowl would top it-and I HATE Alabama sooooo much-it would be close!!

Take the points and Auburn-FSU is 8 point favorite-too many points.It would be nice if they could learn to play defense in the next few weeks.

Oh-nice to see Ohio State lose-Urban Meyer-another prick.

eja_ bottecchia

I assume that you do not have first-hand experience working with LEO. I have closely worked with them for most of my professional career.

I think that you are wrong and you are vastly overstating a problem that, while it does exist, is not as wide spread as you or other may want to make it seem.

Good luck to you.

Dunbar

The speed limit would be 45mph on a Sunday (i.e., no school zone on the weekend.) I don't think speed was a factor, just a cop who was staring down at his phone, laptop or something else instead of looking at the road. Sandwiching a bike lane between two thru traffic lanes (even for just 1/2 block) is a pretty poor traffic design IMO.

I-Like-To-Bike

You don't need a crystal ball for these written in stone truthisms!

phoebeisis

Yes but any sadness heaped on University Alabama Tusc-should be celebrated-forever!!
And that Whiner Urban Meyer-nice to see him lose.

Heck I barely dislike Lane Controlling relative to my ABSOLUTE HATRED of University of Redneck Tree Killing Mushmouths who need to be slapped daily at Tusc.

genec

The very core of what you state is the need to drive the appropriate speed for the way the road is designed... far far too many motorists have it in their mind that they "must drive the speed limit" while totally ignoring that the speed limit is the upper most speed for that area and that often a road should be driven at a slower speed... depending on the vehicle, and the road conditions.

I don't know how to say it any more succinctly than "Slow Down and Save Lives."

genec

Is there any chance that you have a narrow point of view from working with the right LEOs? I know I tend to be jaded about the local community at large... thinking that most are reasonable well educated people... due to the fact that everyone I work with is well educated. But from time to time I go downtown or ride the public transit and I get a vastly different view of the local population... it can be quite eye opening.

You may just have always been working with the best LEOs around.

Just my 2 cents... frankly, every encounter I have ever had with Law Enforcement has been positive.

eja_ bottecchia

Possibly, but I don't think so. In my profession, I have also had to deal with a few of the bad apples in LE.

The overwhelming majority, however, have been good men and women.

I don't wish to beat this horse to death.

One fellow cyclist is dead. That is a loss that touches the entire riding community. For the time being I prefer to focus my attention on the life and times of Mr. Olin.

There will be plenty of time to investigate the whys of this tragic accident.

Does anyone know if there are plans to set up a Ghost Bike at the point where he died? He will certainly be remembered at next year's Ride of Silence.

eja_ bottecchia

lol...

Keith99

That is the other side of the hill. Knowing the road I can see how steep it is. Good chance the rider was under 10 MPH, perhaps well under.

It has been a while since I rode there, If I'm remembering correctly the right lane is a bit strange.

EDIT: Steep enough that some cyclists would weave to climb it. Other side is it has no kick ups in slope so any cyclist doing that is unlikely to suddenly start weaving.

genec

We had a cyclist killed here by PD on a 45MPH road with a steep hill... I am convinced that the time of day put the police car into deep shadows, so the cyclist didn't see the approaching car, and that the speed of the LEO driver, coupled with the slope of the hill, was such that the motorist (perhaps distracted) didn't see the cyclist either, until it was too late.

I think it was a bad set of lighting combinations coupled with a motorist going a bit too fast (quite common on that road and time of day). I took pics of the scene at the same time, a day later and all this was quite evident to me. Black cars disappeared into the shadows of the trees along the road.

I never saw any final disposition of the situation, so I don't know what the PD determined in their investigation.

CrankyOne

I've written about LE for nearly three decades. I've written about cops with lucrative drug businesses and a surprising number who got freebies from the local brothels. I've written about cops beating up drug dealers who invaded their own turf and an entire division busted for illegal property seizures. Then there were the cops caught on tape threatening newbies to keep their mouths shut or their wives would pay.

I've also written about heroic rescues and acts of kindness. And I've written about cops caught on surveillance cams filling their pockets with fishing stuff when they were investigating a break-in at a sporting goods store. BTW, three of the heroic and kind cops were busted stealing fishing gear. Help someone on Tuesday, steal from a small business on Thursday.

I wrote about a cop who spent his life helping women and girls who were trafficked and was quite successful at it. I also covered his funeral and spent time with his family afterwards. BTW, he was fully aware of the corruption in his department, but refused to speak up.

I don't know what your relationship was with LE or what departments you worked with, but I'm not aware of any today that are not like those Bouza wrote about in his book.

CB HI

You are still ignoring that it is the LA Sheriff's Department involved here. They are likely the worst cop shop in the nation. The other cop shops in the area hate them. I have linked a video of LASD fighting other LASD in public. Reading has been provided that LASD tasked with investigating LASD have been taken in by the FBI in the group of 18. There are cop gangs inside LASD. LASD is proud of being more jacked up than LAPD and other police in the area.

LASD was the only police department at the scene investigating LASD. The incriminating evidence is gone unless some citizen has video the LASD does not know about.

I-Like-To-Bike

Really? Where can I find some of your books or articles on this subject?

eja_ bottecchia

You know CB, I have followed your posts here and elsewhere. It appears to me that: 1. You have some axe grind and 2. You are one of those people that ALWAYS has to be right.

I am not going to further feed your need to argue a point to death, especially when your arguments are mostly (or entirely) based upon supposition and speculation.

Have a good life.

eja_ bottecchia

When he gives you the info, please pass it along to me. I'd like to avail myself of his vast scholarship.

CB HI

And I have noticed how your post just ignore facts put forward that do not nicely fit into your beliefs.

How about addressing the direct reports put up about LASD. Maybe you also think the FBI has a vendetta against LASD.

But feel free to close up and run from the discussion.

dynodonn 

Looking at the dogleg in the road near the top, if someone was driving at 45 mph+ and was being inattentive, they could drive straight into the bike lane.

Keith99

One could. I'm trying to remember Sunday. We have had wind recently and that stretch of road is very exposed, but also has some windbreaks. So wind playing a part should not be ignored.

Also I can easily see a driver going well over 45 there. Excluding the 1/4 mile before that point, which involved a few turns and street merges the 5-10 miles before is open and fast road.