Infuriating

[Irulan]

OR, he could be (as DH is fond of saying) "levered out to the hilt." In other words, he may be the kind of person who has borrowed tons of money against his potential earnings in order to enjoy a particular lifestyle.

If his ability to earn is curtailed by a felony charge, people and companies will be getting in line to collect what they are owed. And when the well runs dry, too bad, so sad, you don't get paid. I'm no lawyer, so I have no idea how they would guarantee that the injured party in this case would get to go to the front of the line, if that is at all possible.

That was my thought. Very few of these guys have piles of money sitting around. Unless they are Dave Ramsey fans...

[ridebikeme]

I agree with Eden ! The fact remains that we all make decisions to drive all the time. The difference here is that most people would take responsibility for their actions, and not make excuses. While there may be a sleep apnea problem for this person, the end result is that he caused a very serious accident. What truly bothers me is that he was able to stay awake long enough to drive and call his mechanic about the damages !! And if he does indeed have this problem, how does he stay awake long enough to perform his job?

Regardless of what happens, each time we drive our vehicles we are responsible for our actions. Whether we are tired, talking on the phone, or any other excuse that we can come up with... the fact remains that we are responsible.

Perhaps the family of the cyclist will file a wrongful death lawsuit against the driver, and have some sort of legal action taken. Sounds familiar doesn't it?

[ny biker]

"The new-car smell made me do it."

http://velonews.competitor.com/2010/...hearing_153108


I think bikesnobnyc sums things up pretty well:

"It's becoming increasingly clear to me that if you were addicted to humanity's shortcomings, and in order to feed your addiction you were to to take 21st century America and freebase it so that only its worst elements were left, you'd wind up with the quivering little gooey blob that is Martin Erzinger, which you'd then proceed to smoke and inhale. In any case, the patent absurdity of the "new-car defense" aside, I must say I'm tremendously disappointed in the current state of our rich people. At least "back in the day" they were ruthless in an above-board way, like robber barons, Mr. Burns from "The Simpsons," and the people in "Boardwalk Empire." Now they're just a bunch of cowardly whiners who can't handle the smells of their own luxury cars. Frankly, I think that when a human has devolved to the point where even the richly-appointed interior of his new Mercedes is too much for him, he's really not qualified for life in the outside world and should spend the rest of his life in a small enclosed area like the milk-fed veal calf that he is."

http://bikesnobnyc.blogspot.com/2010...imes-soft.html

[badgercat]

NEW CAR SMELL?!

It's like the Twinkie Defense all over again.

[Bike Chick]

Sentencing is set for 1:00 today. Let's just hope the judge can see through all the bs the defendant is dishing out. Most of the time they can. The real villian in this case is the da, however. Someone needs to prosecute him for not doing his job!

[Bike Chick]

The judge in the case has accepted the plea saying it wasn't a deal he would have made but he didn't find it to be unreasonable. The only thing I can find about today's sentencing was here on Velo News. Perhaps there will be more tomorrow.

[Deborajen]

After having a couple of seizures two years ago, I was told I couldn't drive for 6 months - Kansas Law. After 6 months, my doctor had to submit a form to the State reporting that 1. I hadn't had any more seizures 2. I'm compliant with taking my medications 3. I've followed up with my doctor as prescribed. The doctor also signed off that future medical exams shouldn't be required for me to retain my driving privileges, which basically means I take my condition and treatment seriously. The State responded that they'd go ahead and allow me to keep my license, but THEY want me to have an annual medical exam - failure to do so would result in immediate revocation of my license. I'm still complying with all of this. It's really not a bad idea, for my safety and for everyone else's.

Interesting that the driver in this case uses his condition as an EXCUSE. How often does he doze off and what would the consequences be if it happens when he's driving? I had 2 seizures in 46 years and then went on medication which research shows could very likely prevent me from having another seizure - ever. But I'm in the State's computer as being a medical risk. I'd NEVER get off the hook for an accident if I said "I didn't mean to - I just had a seizure."

The driver most certainly was negligent. He shouldn't be getting off the hook for this - not for a lot of reasons.