OC Hit&Run -arrest
Thread started by
Joe Borfo at 12.9.09 - 10:46 am
LosAngelesCM: "Breaking: Newport Beach- Bicyclist critically-injured hit-and-run, suspect apprehended.
http://bit.ly/4YjCag
Apparently if you get hit and run behind the Orange Curtain the cop will actually do something about it...
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NEWPORT BEACH - A bicycle rider was hit by a vehicle at the intersection of Jamboree Road and Bison Avenue shortly after 6 a.m. and had to be given CPR by paramedics.
The driver, who left the scene, was stopped and arrested a few minutes later, police said.
The bicycle rider, who was estimated to be in his mid-40s, was taken to Western Medical Center in Santa Ana. "He's in pretty bad shape," said Lt. Rob Morton of the Newport Beach Police Department.
Police made a stop on Bristol Street a few minutes later of a vehicle suspected of hitting the bicyclist, Morton said.
As of 9:15 a.m., officers were bringing the driver into the station, but the watch commander did yet know her name or what charges she'll face.
Joe Borfo12.9.09 - 10:47 am
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Its like open season on people getting hit ... I just heard this guy in my office say he is tired of all these fucking bikers... basically he told me he was going to run people off the road and if someone runs into his car or does any damage he was going to sue them or kick there ass ... I was like DUDE ..
OsnapsonJC12.9.09 - 11:04 am
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time for helmet cams. Erase at the end of the if nothing happens, then repeat next day. I'm so sick of these people trying to run me down. I had some mercedes accelerate up behind me and then pull over to the right in front of me blocking my path. i was able to dart to the left and go down the middle of the road but it is clear that some people see using their car to fuck with cyclists as a new sport
onemanstrash12.9.09 - 11:28 am
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I not only going to buy a helmet ( I should have done this a while ago) but Im actually going to wear it ..
OsnapsonJC12.9.09 - 11:34 am
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im always wearing my helmet
madmelo responding to a
comment by OsnapsonJC
12.9.09 - 11:36 am
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There's certain advantages to living in a police state.
The whole way OC is built up is about control
from roadway access, to surveillance cameras, to the popo to citizen ratio.
It does't surprise me one bit that the driver was nabbed so quickly.
plus at that time of day there are tons of drones on the way to work
i'm sure 5 ppl were on their bluetooths giving popo the cowards location and description.
trickmilla12.9.09 - 12:00 pm
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Well, at least law-enforcement drones don't require health benefits or overtime.
Just upload directive-protocols, keep the machine oiled and you're good to go.
bentstrider12.9.09 - 4:11 pm
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RT @LosAngelesCM: More on the cyclist hit-n-run in Newport Beach this morning. Bicyclist was hit in the Bike Lane. http://bit.ly/4YjCag
NEWPORT BEACH - A cyclist is in critical condition after being hit by a vehicle early today, and the driver is under arrest on suspicion of fleeing the scene, police said.
Irvine resident Donald Murphy, 49, was in the bike lane on northbound Jamboree Road near Ford Road about 6 this morning when he was hit by a Saturn Vue driven by Patricia Ann Izquieta, 37, of Riverside, authorities said.
Newport Beach Police crime scene investigators label the evidence spilled out on Jamboree Rd after a bicycle rider was hit by a vehicle at the intersection of Jamboree Road and Bison Avenue shortly after 6 a.m., Wednesday, Dec 9.
Izquieta had made an “unsafe turning maneuver” before hitting Murphy, and she left the scene after the wreck, according to police. Minutes later, she was stopped on Bristol Street and arrested on suspicion of hit-and-run. The car had sustained damage to the windshield and front undercarriage, Newport Beach police Lt. Steve Koudelka said.
Murphy, who was wearing a helmet, was taken to Western Medical Center-Santa Ana in critical condition. “He’s in pretty bad shape,” said Lt. Rob Morton of the Newport Beach Police Department.
The accident left a “300-yard pattern of debris,” Koudelka said. All lanes on northbound Jamboree Road near Bison Avenue were ordered closed until early afternoon for an investigation.
Westminster resident Casey Jennings said she came upon the injured cyclist almost immediately after the accident while driving up Jamboree. "I saw a body in the gutter, and realized it was obviously important,” she said.
Jennings said she stopped her truck, turned on her hazards to alert other motorists and helped one of the victim’s cycling partners perform CPR.
Murphy’s bike, she said, was not close to the scene, and his friend told her it “had been kind of pulled with the car” and that “there were sparks flying.”
After several minutes of CPR, a pulse was detected, and shortly after, paramedics arrived and took Murphy away, Jennings said.
Witnesses are asked to call Detective Bill Beverly at 949-644-3747
Joe Borfo12.9.09 - 4:32 pm
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Lord help us.
This sounds like the riders had no chance to react.
Creative Thing responding to a
comment by Joe Borfo
12.9.09 - 5:03 pm
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OC is actually quite scary to ride in
even though there are bike lanes, the streets are wide and traffic
will regularly will pass you at freeway speeds.
Cyclist get hit down there quite often, sometimes they live.
Dedicated818 responding to a
comment by Creative Thing
12.9.09 - 5:58 pm
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fuck yeah, people drive fast as hell down there. i lived down there for almost two years. most definitely not the place to get hit by a car on a bike.
i hope dude makes it out okay.
coldcut responding to a
comment by Dedicated818
12.9.09 - 6:06 pm
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Everyone pls be extra careful. This trend is out of control. It's almost to the point where you have to wonder what the mental state is of the driver behind or alongside you is.
Some drivers have it out for us, some are just dumb as doorknobs and not paying attention. It's not just commuting anymore, you have psychoanalyzing drivers in order to stay alive.
jericho1ne responding to a
comment by coldcut
12.9.09 - 6:31 pm
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I've lived in Cypress, just over the Orange Curtain next to Long Beach, for 11 years.
Drivers here are about the same as in L.A. proper.
Roads are better and there are more bike lanes.
That said, in 23 years of cycling, I've been hit by cars 4 times, all in O.C.
All of the incidents were at intersections and were caused by cars turning right and not paying attention.
Creative Thing responding to a
comment by Dedicated818
12.9.09 - 7:55 pm
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effin' pist!!!
this is precisely why i don't take our rides out to the OC. as mentioned, the roads are nice, wide, open, and relatively smooth. but the drivers are nuts like they've never seen a cyclist before, and don't appear to be educated about the rights of cyclists. everyone be careful out there!
tfunk408 responding to a
comment by Roadblock
12.9.09 - 8:36 pm
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truly terrible. i hope he rests in peace and rides his bike wherever he is now. sadness.
coldcut12.14.09 - 2:03 am
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Yes it's sad. He is dead. The end.
What is even more truly terrible to me is how the driver is going to get off without a hitch... You think?
Joe Borfo responding to a
comment by coldcut
12.14.09 - 2:08 am
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i don't condone what the driver did- she was cowardly in trying to flee the scene. but it's not entirely accurate that she got off "without a hitch", and i don't mean the hit-and-run charge. when someone takes the life of another (accidentally or otherwise), that experience stays with that person forever.
i'd much rather be one who gets hit and killed than be one who hit and kills another person.
tfunk408 responding to a
comment by Joe Borfo
12.14.09 - 3:12 am
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In every single one of these threads I have seen people crying for educating motorists on cyclists' rights. Do you honestly think these drivers don't know that everyone has a right
not the be murdered? Education is the smallest part of this problem. Accidents happen occasionally and sure, motorists are largely (often completely) uneducated about
any traffic laws, but a decreasing proportion of these collisions are accidents and almost none have to do with a knowledge deficit. These motorists are simply selfish, angry, evil human beings. They just literally don't care that they are taking a life, or (worse, in a sense) crippling someone for life. It is a premeditated act. They are often avoiding a cyclist to begin with and then become angry and impatient and
actively make the decision to engage in a collision. That is murder. What does education have to do with it? What these people need is the ability to control their actions and emotions, especially when behind the wheel of a 4,000 pound weapon. In the case of a hit-and-run, it's worse because you can add cowardice and irresponsibility to the mix of evils, but I still think every one of these pezzi di merda should get the chair.
Yeah, I'm a little upset about it. I don't want to be the next one hit, but I know that every time I get on my bike it could be me.
outerspace12.14.09 - 3:50 am
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Forgiveness is when the driver stops. But to forgive someone for driving away and leaving a person for dead? That's a selfish calculated act of opportunity.
Roadblock responding to a
comment by outerspace
12.14.09 - 7:50 am
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Very, very few drivers who hit cyclists do it on purpose. Its almost always an accident, caused by a variety of circumstances. Lack of attention due to a distraction, lack of knowledge about cyclists rights, drunkenness, other drugs, didn't see the bike, thought the bike was going slower than it really was (a classic!), etc.
Even Dr. Death attacked the cyclists (on purpose) out of anger, not because he wanted to murder them. Anger gone terribly wrong.
Then the self preservation instinct kicks in and, lacking any compassion for another, they jump on the gas and split.
If we weren't cyclists ourselves, would all of us stop our car after hitting someone, if we thought we could avoid the situation by running?
I'd like to think I would, but a few years ago, when I ran a red light in my car and hit another car, I could have scooted. It was dark, nobody else was around and I thought about running. I didn't, but it scares me that I thought about it.
Creative Thing responding to a
comment by outerspace
12.14.09 - 8:05 am
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You know it is sad that a cyclist is dead. The cyclists family wants to forgive. That is quite admirable. An old proverb says, "Wnen you embark on a journey of revenge, first dig two graves.." We'll there will be no revenge. So only one grave needs to be prepared. In my opinion it is one grave too many.
sgrant12.14.09 - 8:53 am
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You know that's really touching and everything, but uh, If I want to forgive someone, I can just fucking do it myself mentally without having to tell everybody about it.
I just hope this driver gets put away. Somebody trying to flee the scene. Fuck That!
I'm afraid this is only going to help this lady's case. And then it's only going to make people more aware that they can get away with a hit and run because GOD says thou shalt make a public statement to the media about your "forgiveness"... (Rolls Eyes)
Joe Borfo12.14.09 - 9:21 am
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From another Forum...
Here are the details from one of the cyclists in the group:
The last two days have included some of the saddest moments I have experienced and I thought I might share some of them.
I struck out on the usual Wednesday morning bicycle ride yesterday (11/9) with my friends, Pete Fildes and Don Murphy. Being experienced riders, we were each decked out in warm clothes and bright reflective orange or yellow jackets and, of course, bright lights in front and flashing lights at our backs (we would be back before daybreak).
After our turnaround point Don and I were just about to the top of the biggest climb on the route (Pete had cut short and was waiting at the top for us) with Don about 100 or so yards behind me. Just as I reached Pete we heard a loud thump behind us. At that instant I did not process the sound as catastrophic, thinking that one of the very few cars out at that hour (5:50 AM) must have run over something in the road. Then we saw a dark SUV speed past us (45 or 50 mph, normal for that stretch) and Pete and I remarked that whatever the SUV had run over must have gotten stuck under it since we could hear a scraping sound and then saw sparks under the car and commented that there must be some metal in whatever was being dragged.
Then Pete suggested “Could that have been Don?!” We both turned and saw Don lying in the road against the curb about 60 yards back. We raced to Don and, even though there was no visible trauma (just a little blood from his nose), he looked to be in terrible shape: no pulse, no breathing. I dialed 911 and gave my phone to Pete to summon the paramedics while I started CPR on Don.
When Pete had finished the call, he started to try to flag down a passing car (with surprisingly poor results). After many unsuccessful attempts, we got someone to stop and a woman told me she was “familiar with CPR, but that it had been a long time." I showed her how/when to do the chest compressions as I continued the breathing for Don and after a minute or two she told me that she thought she felt a heartbeat (elation!). She monitored the heartbeat and I continued the breathing until the paramedics showed up (between 5 and 10 minutes from the call). As they took over, they took Don’s blood pressure: 110/86 (more good news).
While they worked on Don, I called my wife, Carol and told her the terrible news and asked her to call Don’s wife (a friend of Carol’s). She called and went over to drive Heather, Don’s wife, to the hospital. After they transported Don, I stayed at the accident scene to do the best I could with the police. I noticed that the police were paying special attention to an area far down the road from where we found Don. When I walked down to see what they were looking at it became apparent that Don had been struck far down the road from where we found him. I paced off the distance: 55 yards.
The police told us that they had located the hit-and-run vehicle parked behind a restaurant a mile and a half down the road from us and were questioning the driver. Pete and I rode our bikes to the restaurant. It was a sickening ride. Pieces of Don’s bike were strewn the entire mile and a half. When we got to the restaurant we saw the SUV and the police asked us if it was consistent with the one we saw drive past and, of course, it was. When we got a closer view (they wouldn’t let us into the parking lot – crime scene tape) we saw the smashed windshield and crumpled hood and parts of Don’s bike were still protruding from the front of the car. The police were talking to a Hispanic woman whom they identified as the driver (but they wouldn’t let me talk to her – probably wise of them).
Pete and I opted for the bike trail to ride home and Carol called me in route to say that Don had been taken into the ER and Don’s youngest daughter, Chandler, had already gotten to the hospital. She recognized one of the paramedics (they had been lifeguards together) who said to Chandler that he was so sorry her dad was in such bad shape. Carol also told me that Don’s older daughter, Madison, was stranded at UCLA without a car, but they were going to wait to see what developed before making arrangements to get her there. I protested and told them to find a way to get Madison to the hospital a.s.a.p. As soon as I disconnected from Carol, my phone rang again and it was another riding friend, Helen, who said that she had just learned of the accident (Madison had tested Helen’s son about it). Helen asked if I could think of anything she could do. There are no coincidences. I told her about the need to get Madison back to Orange County and had her call Carol to coordinate that while I rode home to change clothes and get to the hospital.
In a crisis, activity is almost a blessing; you do what needs to be done with a sense of urgency, but without having to reflect. At the hospital, waiting was almost unbearable. Family and some friends had gathered around the ER while the tests were run on Don. Then the doctors ushered those who were there into a small lounge and delivered the grim news. Don had suffered two fatal injuries: serious damage to the lining of his brain and a broken neck (between C1 and C2). They said there was no operation that could be done, no brain activity, nothing that would change over time (and no hope). I will not forget Chandler’s anguished cry when the words sank in. Either grief or numbness washed over those in the room. Carol had to step out. There were a few questions, but nothing more could really be said.
Madison and Helen arrived from UCLA and the wound was reopened as the finality of the situation was shared with them. In ones and twos, we stopped by the room where Don was connected to the life support systems and begged him to come back. Chandler’s paramedic friend phoned her to tell her he had talked to Don in the ambulance the whole way urging him to hang on. Over the next hour the sadness deepened.
I understand that today was the day they were to disconnect life support and do the organ donor thing, but we have let the family grieve by themselves.
This has been one of the saddest episodes I have experienced. But I am just a spectator. Don and his family have had so much taken from them. Every time I think of them rekindles that sadness.
Don was such a good man with a wonderful family. While his loss may felt more acutely by Heather, Chandler, Madison and his immediate family, there is a huge group of people in this community who feel a great sense of loss and we are all pooer now.
alicestrong12.14.09 - 10:11 am
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I read this in a public place (employment office) and lost it.
This really tears me up.
In a case like this, what else could have been done to stay safe? I can't think of anything.
Since I live in O.C., I'll take the job of installing a ghost bicycle.
Can anyone help?
Creative Thing responding to a
comment by alicestrong
12.14.09 - 11:03 am
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I have a bike I can donate. joe.borfo@gmail.com
Joe Borfo responding to a
comment by Creative Thing
12.14.09 - 11:13 am
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thanks for posting the details of this incident. very tragic...
tfunk408 responding to a
comment by alicestrong
12.14.09 - 11:19 am
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I want to do it like the ones I saw in Tucson: remove tires, chain, breaks etc.
All I'll need is the frame, fork, handle bars and wheels.
I'll also need help with the sign (I can't weld).
Also, anyone who can donate a chain/lock or help out with painting/installation.
Please contact me:
lesliecaldera(at)sbcglobal.net
Creative Thing responding to a
comment by Joe Borfo
12.14.09 - 11:40 am
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thanks for posting alice.
what a sad story.
punctuated by the cowardice of the woman who wouldn't stop.
i'd have some empathy for her if she had the courage to do the right thing.
but leaving somebody for dead is disgusting.
its sad that in addition to all the lives she has destroyed unnecessarily
her own is added to this list because of her inability to act in a humane way
after making a tragic mistake.
Hopefully thats something she can ponder in jail.
trickmilla responding to a
comment by alicestrong
12.14.09 - 12:48 pm
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I wonder if we could get Kryptonite to donate a ulock or a fuggetabout it NY chain lock to the cause. i'd like to see these monuments last a bit longer.
trickmilla responding to a
comment by Creative Thing
12.14.09 - 12:50 pm
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Aww man, this is so below average! Major lump in my throat after this read...
Don Murphy R.I.P.....
marleydog responding to a
comment by alicestrong
12.14.09 - 2:40 pm
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> Lack of attention due to a distraction
Criminal negligence while behind the wheel. It is your duty and responsibility to everyone around you to be paying attention while you are driving.
> Lack of knowledge about cyclists rights
Thinking you have right-of-way is never an excuse for creating a dangerous situation for anyone. Regardless of who has right-of-way, it is your duty and responsibility to everyone around you to drive safely.
> drunkenness, other drugs
You consider driving under the influence to be an accident? God save you.
> didn't see the bike
This *could* be the bike's fault, but in the case of well-equipped cyclists with lights, reflective tape, etc... riding in bike lanes, following the rules of the road, please refer to criminal negligence and paying attention while driving.
> thought the bike was going slower than it really was (a classic!)
The fact that you call this a classic says enough about the lax license testing policies of the DMV, but is still the driver's fault, whether intentional or not. It is your duty and responsibility not to operate a motor vehicle if you are incapable of judging the situation around you soundly enough to make safe decisions while driving.
Defensive (read: paranoid) riding on the parts of cyclists will prevent some of these catastrophes. For example, if I see a car edging out to make a right, I cover the brakes just in case, and I leave tons of extra space in case they start to roll. It is unfortunate that even within this community people can let these kinds of tragedies off as accidents. DUI, texting while driving, rubbernecking, not looking when making a right on red, all of these are decisions that result in deaths.
I feel safer on my motorcycle.
outerspace responding to a
comment by Creative Thing
12.14.09 - 9:23 pm
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jeez, that is so sad, it just blows my mind =(
natefrogg12.15.09 - 8:03 am
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I think CTs point is that most of those crimes are crimes of negligence or poor judgement.
they are usually not done with the intent to harm a specific person.
However, leaving somebody for dead, after you have creamed them with your car is a conscious decision to put personal convenience over the life and well being of others you have hurt. Its offensive on a whole other level.
trickmilla responding to a
comment by outerspace
12.15.09 - 8:16 am
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