This past summer, Megan was enjoying her daily commute back from her medical practice. The roads were busy but she had a lot of room to ride in the curb lane. As she approached an intersection, a motorist accelerated past her and pulled directly into her lane before slamming on the vehicle’s brakes to make a last second right turn. Megan tried to slow down but there was no space. She attempted to avoid a collision by swinging to her left. In the process, she caught the back corner of the car and was thrown onto the road. When police arrived, the driver and passenger claimed that Megan had been weaving through traffic at a high speed when she rode into the back of their car. The attending officer blamed Megan and issued her a traffic citation.
The legal system, like our roads, is dominated by “car culture.” The rules have largely been drafted with cars in mind; bikes were an afterthought. Police who attend the scene of a crash must interpret complex laws that make little sense from the perspective of a cyclist. Many officers often don’t have a clear understanding of the law. Rather than digging deep into the facts of the individual case, they seem to choose to take the path of least resistance—blame the bike.
Due to inherent bias in our system, the pursuit of justice for cyclists requires a creative approach to litigation. When representing cyclists, we lawyers must identify every possible repository of evidence. Bike computers, action cameras, storefront surveillance and red light/intersection cameras can make all the difference. By immediately scouring the scene of a crash and preserving data, we can often overcome what can appear to be insurmountable odds.
“Head units, action cameras, storefront surveillance and red light/intersection cameras can make all the difference”
When Megan retained us, the first thing that we did was collect her bike computer and direct our team of experts to perform an analysis of the data. What they found was that Megan was riding in a straight line at a modest speed when suddenly she slowed down and veered left. The data provided clear support for Megan’s story and discredited that of the motorist and passenger. Based on Megan’s data, the traffic violation was dismissed and her personal injury claim was re-established.
Megan’s story is a cautionary tale. Arm yourself before your next ride. Start your bike computer or, even better, ride with a camera. You never know. The evidence that you gather may be…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Canadian Cycling Magazine…