Today is Bastille Day. On this date in years past, I have written about two of my favorite topics: cycling and France. Today, however, I shall relate a story I wish I didn't have to tell.
Last month, a driver plowed his pickup truck into Masters race that was about to start in Arizona. Nine cyclists suffered serious injiuries. On Monday, the family of one, 58-year-old Jeremy Barrett, announced his death.
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| Jeremy Barrett, R.I.P. |
The driver has since been idenitified as 38-year-old Shawn Michael Chock. Turns out, he has a long history of encounters with law enforcement, including DUI charges. After it was determined that he intentionally drove into the group of cyclists, he was charged with nine counts of aggrevated assault with a deadly weapon. In addition, he was charged with fleeing the scene of an accident and unlawful flight.
Those charges, however, were brought against him before Barrett passed away. Now his family and friends are calling for additional charges. I am with them: It's about time that folks like Chock stopped getting away with murder when it comes to cyclists. (I mean, what exactly is someone's intention when he plows into a group of cyclists with his pickup truck?)
It's bad enough when cyclists are killed or injured by intoxicated or simply careless drivers, as happened in Michigan five years ago. But it's time for folks like Chock to be brought to account for willfully endangering and killing cyclists and pedestrians.
