Comments on: William Wilson, motorist who severely injured El Tour rider Gary Stuebe, to be sentenced Monday, June 22

By: Mindy

Mindy — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 17:53:20 +0000

My son is only 17 years old but I feel sure his moral compass is such that he wouldn’t have driven away from a horrible accident he had caused, after stopping of course to check the damage to his car. As for Mr. Wilson, you’d think such a fine man with a whole life of experience would know better than to behave as he did, and I still say his apology was woefully inadequate.

By: Linda

Linda — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 21:53:53 +0000

Nate, what I am saying is that if Mr. Wilson, whom you are proud to know, was equally sorry, equally a good person, etc. but only 25 years old, his sentance for a hit and run of any magnitude would have included serious jail time. Good people break the law every day. Senior citizens just statistically suffer far less consequences for it than younger people.

By: Nate B.

Nate B. — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 14:04:15 +0000

There are many things the media is not reporting regarding Mr. Wilson. I have known Mr. Wilson for over 15 years. He is one of the finest men I have known. He has a life history of accomplishments many people would be amazed at. He has been extremely active in his local church and schools for many, many years. When he says he is sorry for all that has happened, I guarantee he means it. I assure all he is in agony over this whole incident. Bill is a fine man that I am proud to know.

By: Linda

Linda — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 10:48:36 +0000

If Mr. Wilson had been younger, he would have gotten alot of jail time. Imagine the press if he was a 20 year old.

We all need to consider why we accept behavior from a “senior citizen” we never would accept from a teenager or a 3 year old.

BTW, I am 48 and ashamed at the level of self-absorption and selfishness Americans, especially judges, tolerate from old people while we want to charge 8 year olds as adults and put 13 years into regular prison with adults.

By: Peter

Peter — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 17:40:50 +0000

The sentencing for the Mr. Wilson was this morning and I attended. Tucson’s TV channel 13 crew was also there so it will be on today’s news. Bottom line: no jail time, 3 years of probation, he never drives again and he is to remain in an assisted living center in Georgia.

The whole thing had nothing to do with the accident that the driver caused but the fact that he left the scene of the accident. The judge felt that since the driver did contact an attorney (2 freakin’ days AFTER the accident!!!) he complied with the law’s intent that a driver accept responsibility. Never mind the fact that he went home and removed human tissue and bike paint from his car to try to cover up the accident. Whatever. They did mention that a civil suit is going on, that the driver has a $3 million insurance policy, yada yada yada. But the victim with the most serious injuries, the one who was in a coma for 3 months, the one who had multiple brain surgeries, the one who was declared mentally incompetent by the court and now has his wife as his legal guardian because of his brain injury, the one who already has $1.5 million in medical bills hanging over his head…..he had to sit there and watch the driver get off with a slap on the wrist. I was actually crying there in court, the whole thing was so sad. I should also mention that one of the other bicyclists who was injured that day gave an extremely emotional plea to the judge, asking for no leniency in the case. That had to have been so difficult to do, and my hat goes off to him.

I just have a very empty feeling in my stomach now. Damn, damn, damn.

By: Erik

Erik — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 17:05:26 +0000

Ed and Mike–

I went back and found my source, and the intoxicated business is raw hearsay. So don’t bank on it and I shouldn’t have mentioned it.

EBR

By: alison Jones

alison Jones — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 15:52:45 +0000

Eric, good advice on the UIM insurance. I am going to check on mine and perhaps increase the amount. I never gave it much thought, but after having dinner with my husband’s boss on Friday, and listening to his rant about bicycles on the road, I am more aware that some people might consider me to be a target. I tried to set the guy straight, but because he is my husband’s boss, I couldn’t really speak freely.

By: Erik

Erik — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 21:00:01 +0000

Hey ChipSeal,

Not impossible. You can still purchase auto insurance, even though you don’t drive. Whether it makes sense or not, is up to you. It is probably cheaper for you to get a health insurance policy with a high deductible in case of a serious accident. Health insurance will cover you in far more situations, as well.

EBR

By: ChipSeal

ChipSeal — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 20:06:49 +0000

Since I am a renter, and car-free, it is impossible for me to obtain UM/UIM insurance coverage in any amount.

By: Red Star

Red Star — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 22:15:33 +0000

Kudos to Ed for making a positive contribution and bringing out the social and economic role of insurance, which seems to be the usual cover for laggardly infrastructure public policy when it comes to cyclists. It would be interesting to learn whether cyclists participating in all the zillions of USA “el tour de…” events “insure up” not to mention everyday cyclist…

Yet, as standard, insurance is not without difficulty:

Settlements and Verdicts

“Bike Rider Coverage” at:

http://www.lawyersandsettlements.com/settlements/11521/acuity-bicyclist-insurance-coverage.html