Mark J. Ginsberg

Rick,

To pick nits, Charles has graduated from law school and is therefore a Juris doctorate, or JD, he will be taking the Wyoming Bar next month.. I think and hiope he will pass, at that point he can be sworn into his state bar and will be an attorney at law.

He and I had a great and long talk this week and he got a ton of emails about this topic already and I expect after he sits for the bar exam he will run with this topic, which I am personally glad to see.

Mark

Mark J. Ginsberg
Berkshire Ginsberg, LLC
Attorneys At Law
1216 SE Belmont St.
Portland, OR 97214
(503) 542-3000
Fax (503) 233-6874
markjginsberg@yahoo.com
www.bikesafetylaw.com

________________________________
From: Rick C Johnson
To: OBRA
Sent: Fri, January 15, 2010 7:39:43 AM
Subject: [OBRA Chat] Accident case review

Charles Pelkey, an attorney who writes for Velonews, has an open request for information on accidents involving cars and bicyclists. This could very well turn into something very significant to all of us.
Please see the following article:

http://velonews.competitor.com/2010/01/explainer/good-news-and-bad-news-from-the-courts_102347

The request, and contact information, come at the end of the article. It reads:

>
> Other cases
>
> In writing about Dr. Evil’s L.A. road-rage trial, the Virginia case, the bad lawyer and other often-tragic conflicts between cyclists and automobiles, I’ve noticed a relatively wide disparity in how these cases are handled by prosecutors. Indeed, that /apparent/ disparity – including one terrible (and never prosecuted) case in which a friend lost her leg in accident involving a /15-year-old/ driver here in Laramie, Wyoming – prompted my old riding partner (a criminal law professor) and me to consider working on an a law review article about those prosecutorial decisions and whether bike/car incidents are treated differently than cases involving two cars or even auto/pedestrian accidents.
>
> Many of you have already shared personal and news stories about such incidents, be they accidents or intentional criminal acts. A number of them, particularly when a prosecutor opts not to charge a driver because he or she “has already suffered enough” (a direct quote from one case), are especially heart-breaking . Others just elicit what can best be described as a (and /please/ excuse my acronymic French here) WTF?!? reaction. What we’d like to do is attempt to see whether cases involving cyclists are actually treated differently by prosecutors and, if so, what legislative action might be necessary to rectify that disparity.
>
> While a law review article will involve much more than simply offering anecdotal evidence, we would still be grateful if you could send us examples of cases in your area, particularly if the news stories offer insight into how a prosecutor reached a decision whether to pursue a case or not. Ordinarily, I would encourage you to send those to my /VeloNews/ account, but in this case, I would prefer it if you mailed /those/ to me at my personal account .
>
> Meanwhile, be safe out there.
>
--
Rick Johnson
Bend, Oregon

"Those who cannot remember the past, are condemned to repeat it" - George Santayana

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Rick C Johnson

Charles Pelkey, an attorney who writes for Velonews, has an open request
for information on accidents involving cars and bicyclists. This could
very well turn into something very significant to all of us.
Please see the following article:

http://velonews.competitor.com/2010/01/explainer/good-news-and-bad-news-from-the-courts_102347

The request, and contact information, come at the end of the article. It
reads:

>
> Other cases
>
> In writing about Dr. Evil’s L.A. road-rage trial, the Virginia case,
> the bad lawyer and other often-tragic conflicts between cyclists and
> automobiles, I’ve noticed a relatively wide disparity in how these
> cases are handled by prosecutors. Indeed, that /apparent/ disparity –
> including one terrible (and never prosecuted) case in which a friend
> lost her leg in accident involving a /15-year-old/ driver here in
> Laramie, Wyoming – prompted my old riding partner (a criminal law
> professor) and me to consider working on an a law review article about
> those prosecutorial decisions and whether bike/car incidents are
> treated differently than cases involving two cars or even
> auto/pedestrian accidents.
>
> Many of you have already shared personal and news stories about such
> incidents, be they accidents or intentional criminal acts. A number of
> them, particularly when a prosecutor opts not to charge a driver
> because he or she “has already suffered enough” (a direct quote from
> one case), are especially heart-breaking
> .
> Others just elicit what can best be described as a (and /please/
> excuse my acronymic French here) WTF?!?
> reaction.
> What we’d like to do is attempt to see whether cases involving
> cyclists are actually treated differently by prosecutors and, if so,
> what legislative action might be necessary to rectify that disparity.
>
> While a law review article will involve much more than simply offering
> anecdotal evidence, we would still be grateful if you could send us
> examples of cases in your area, particularly if the news stories offer
> insight into how a prosecutor reached a decision whether to pursue a
> case or not. Ordinarily, I would encourage you to send those to my
> /VeloNews/ account, but in this case, I would prefer it if you mailed
> /those/ to me at my personal account .
>
> Meanwhile, be safe out there.
>
--

Rick Johnson
Bend, Oregon

"Those who cannot remember the past, are condemned to repeat it" - George Santayana