cohophysh

https://www.oregonlive.com/news/orego...250.xml&coll=7

CastIron

Oooooohh...A year's suspension for killing a cyclist. They could've just added a line in the Vehicular Homicide statute.

Or followed Minnesota's lead in traffic law genious:
DWI=virtually automatic plea bargain to Careless Driving and maybe a 60 day suspension.
100mph on a desolate country freeway=mandatory revocation.

There's no wisdom to found at the legislature. Sure as hell not for cyclists.

MIN 

SALEM -- A careless driver who kills or seriously injures a cyclist or other "vulnerable" road user will face much stiffer penalties -- up to a year's license suspension and a $12,500 fine -- under a bill that cleared the Oregon Legislature on Wednesday.
House Bill 3314 picked up speed after a 26-year-old Idaho woman with a suspended license struck and killed Washington County cyclist Tim O'Donnell as he signaled to make a left turn on a rural road earlier this month.
The cyclist's widow, Mary O'Donnell, watched from the gallery as the Senate approved the bill earlier this week.

"I would rest easier if I knew that this senseless tragedy could bring some good," she wrote in a letter placed on each lawmaker's desk.
The crash, and the news that the driver faces nothing more serious than a $1,115 fine, sparked outrage beyond the cycling community. Newspapers published angry editorials, and voters contacted their legislators.
The House took final action on the bill Wednesday, approving Senate amendments. The bill now goes to the governor.
The bill provides that when careless driving results in injury or death of a vulnerable user, which includes cyclists, pedestrians, highway workers, horse riders, skateboarders and roller skaters, the driver would face a one-year license suspension and a maximum $12,500 fine. These penalties would not be imposed if the driver completes a traffic safety course and between 100 and 200 hours of community service.
The driver would have to appear in court, not just write a check, said Scott Bricker, lobbyist for the Bicycle Transportation Alliance, the Portland-based organization that has been effective in shepherding a package of bike proposals through the Legislature this session.
Another BTA bill that appears headed for approval would require motorists to leave a safe distance when passing bicycles.
Bricker said the vulnerable user bill is designed to bridge a gap in Oregon law between careless driving, a traffic infraction that carries a maximum $300 fine, and reckless driving, a criminal offense that can include jail time but can be difficult to prove.

DieselDan

A similar bill was introduced in South Carolin after a cyclist was killed by a car on Hilton Head Island, and the driver only got a reckless driving citation, as did the driver in that infamous MS 150 death in Marlboro County. The bill was dismissed in committee to the tune of "accidents happen" and "they deserve what they get."

MONGO!

Why can't they be charged with manslaughter?

CrimsonKarter21

That's in the realm of Ultimate Suckery.

1 year of suspension for being a killer?

MONGO!

And for driving with a suspended license.

Didn't Paris Hilton go to jail for that?
Did she even kill anyone?

CrimsonKarter21

Drunk and Suspended.

MONGO!

Good job she got put in jail, she could have killed somebody!
That's a $1,000 fine!!!

Sprocket_Jockey

That will make it all better. Kill someone, take a safety course, pick up some trash, and you're good to go.

CardiacKid

I bet everyone in Oregon is now saying; "Boy, I guess I better not hit that cyclist now." This is a typical politician's trick. They can say they did something, without coming close to fixing anything. At least they didn't make it worse.

pityr

baby steps....baby steps

We have to start somewhere...

ElJamoquio

These penalties would not be imposed if the driver completes a traffic safety course and between 100 and 200 hours of community service.