I just received a call from Lt Stai with the Marion County Sheriff's Office. He's the officer who contacted me wanting to be sure that his department was handling this ordeal properly.
I appreciate his call and the efforts he went to to look into this. He tells me that he has been in contact with the responding officer and was told that while the case details have not yet been filed with the DA that conversations have been held between the DA and the officer on how to proceed. The Lieutenant tells me that I should expect a call from the responding officer sometime by tomorrow afternoon.
I again questioned why when a driver has been located who admits to running into a person with his vehicle then driving away that he isn't cited immediately for what we call hit and run. I suppose that won't be answered to my satisfaction until later in this process.
Not that I condone this, but it was noted on a different forum that many of us have seen dash cam video taken from a police car that shows officers emptying the clips of their service weapons at the driver when a car accelerates towards them.
Perhaps if the officer where to think of this situation in those terms the wheels of justice would be moving a bit faster. It's been almost a week.
EVENING UPDATE:
I was doing a bit of web surfing tonight and ran across this YouTube clip. While Oregon does not have a 3 foot law, ORS does say that a driver must pass at a distance that would keep them from hitting a cyclist if they should fall. (seems a bit hard to quantify to me)
I'm glad to hear that you are ok and that you are not going to let this drop with out a fight. I am far away from you geographically but I'm right behind you in spirit.
ReplyDeleteDid you seek medical attention for your ankle? At least in Wisconsin I think that has an impact on potential charges he would face. I haven't had an encounter quite like yours yet, but I've had my share of road rage directed at me while riding and have had similar responses from authorities.
Incidents like this are why I never ride on the road without a camera. http://bikesafer.blogspot.com
Keep up the fight.
Bikesafer
Jeff
Hi Jeff,
ReplyDeleteI had a camera along, just not my helmet cam. I will be riding in that same area tomorrow, you can be certain I'll have the helmet cam along this time!
The responding officer took photos of my bloodied ankle. If I read Oregon laws correctly once you've got blood from an assault the only thing that bumps it up is if the injuries were "serious".
My injuries weren't serious, but I feel this driver's stated intention to run me over followed by him intentionally doing just that is indeed serious.
Thanks for following along and offering words of support.
The three foot law really isn't just a three foot law it is a safe distance law. ORS 811.065
ReplyDeleteIndeed, Washington has a three foot law as do many other states. Oregon has no such requirement.
ReplyDeleteIf I gave the impression that Oregon has a 3 foot law I'm sorry. I've attended the BTA Bicycle Legal clinic presented by Attorney Ray Thomas, I know what Oregon's law is concerning this issue.
Oregon's safe passing distance law is actually better than a three-foot law. The intent is to give driver's a more practical gauge (a cyclist's height) to judge a safe distance rather than trying to figure out what three feet is while going 80 mph. The law mistakenly gives the impression that cyclists mysteriously tip over for no reason, but hey, I'll take what we can get.
ReplyDelete