Raleigh cyclist killed

[VegaVixen]

Steve Jordan of Raleigh, NC, was killed when he was hit by an unloaded logging truck yesterday.

Steve was a friend of a cyclist in one of my local cycling groups, who had this to say:

"A friend & colleague of mine, Steve Jordan, was struck & killed on his bicycle yesterday afternoon in the Raleigh area. Steve was the Director of the NC Division of Mental Health, Mental Retardation, & Substance Abuse Services. He was an avid cyclyst and former CAT racer. Steve had 3 young children, was in the prime of his life & was one of the finest human beings i knew. cycling has become so dangerous."

Be careful out there. They're not watching out for us, so we have to watch out for them.

[wolfpack]

A co-worker here and the cyclist were friends for the past 15yrs. He leaves behind a wife, & 3 kids, age 17, 15, & 12.

I hope it was a true accident and the truck driver was not trying to "just scare" him. I've had that scare recently when out riding and it's not something to laugh about. If it were just an accident, it could be that the driver didn't know how much those trucks can suck you into them as they roll by.

[wolfpack]

Updated report.

So....he was going less than the speed limit, but there was other traffic in the lanes, which prevented him from moving over. Instead of slowing down until he could pass, he decides to motor on and hit the guy? Unbelievable.

And, I know from friends who saw this happen - Steve was underneath the truck and the bike broken all to hell. He lay there for almost 2.5hr before ME could get out there and let them move him.

[VegaVixen]

Misdemeanor? But I guess that's all they could charge him with, unless reckless and negligent driving can be added to the charge of failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident.

Why the hell didn't he slam on brakes and sideswipe a car? Even in a chain reaction, it's likely that no one would have died, though there's no way of knowing for sure.

Bad decision. Bad, bad decision.

[wolfpack]

Yep. He had a choice, a choice other than hitting Steve. He could have moved on over into the center lane, he could have slowed down until safe to pass, and/or he could have slowed/stopped.

What would have happened with those choices? Well, dang. Someone's car would have been damaged (most likely no loss of life). Dang. Someone was going to be 5 seconds later to that next turn (most likely no loss of life). And, dang....I guess the car behind the logging truck would have rear-ended him, damaging his car (again, no loss of like most likely).

In the end, he did have a choice besides hitting a cyclist. No words for what I feel. Anger, sadness, shock, etc....

How about involuntary manslaughter????

[VegaVixen]

He's scheduled to appear in District Court in Wake County on August 1, morning session, Room 001A.

He is charged with MISDEMEANOR DEATH BY VEHICLE under GS 20-141.4(A2) and FAILURE TO REDUCE SPEED under GS 20-141(M).

That second charge is what will get him convicted of the first charge. Let's hope the second charge sticks. And let's hope the media pick up on it and let people know they need to drive more responsibly.

[herbm]

Very sad.....sorry to hear this...condolences to his family!

[Red Rider]

I shared on Facebook & Twitter...some of my friends/followers are rabid and will write letters and/or make phone calls. I got sucked up into what a rare and compassionate talent the cyclist was -- seems the Dept. will miss him big-time. So sad, so wrong.

So I hope they end up throwing the book at the perp. He freaking deserves it.

[VegaVixen]

His next court date is in district court, October 24, Wake County Courthouse, morning session.

[VegaVixen]

Next court date is in district court, December 29, Wake County Courthouse, morning session.