Cyclist death officially ruled an accident

As opposed to a murder? This is odd.

WASHINGTON - The D.C. Medical Examiner has ruled the death of a cyclist killed during a Nuclear Security Summit motorcade an accident.

According to the autopsy, Costance Holden was killed by multiple blunt impact injuries.

 

Holden, 68, was killed in a collision with a 5.5-ton military truck driven by a D.C. National Guardsman that was pulling into an intersection for a motorcade.

The accident is still under investigation by the Metropolitan Police Department.

Also, Matthew Yglesias writes about this incident including this line

In a bizarre response, the National Guard assured a local TV station reporter that "we will look at the video to make sure the pedestrian didn't run into the truck as it was moving."

Comments

[SJE]

Well, if she was found to be full of drugs, they might have looked further to see if it could have been murder or suicide. Its still important to check these things.

[Stop the bikehate]

SJE-
That is an offensive remark, totally unneeded. Hopefully no family member of yours' will be memorialized by such wild and ignorant speculation.

[washcycle]

I don't think SJE was speculating about Ms. Holden. I think he was just talking about protocol. Regardless of the person or situation there are probably some tests that are just standard in a situation like this. He was not saying she was a drug user, or that she had been drugged, but that it is SOP to eliminate that for everyone. At least that's what I think he was saying...

[SJE]

Exactly, Washcycle, I am not casting aspersions on Ms. Holden, only what is SOP. I used to work in hospitals and labs, and sometimes people die for what seem like straightforward reasons, until something odd turns up and you have to start digging. Sure, it happens more often on TV, but it does happen. This is all the more important when there is possibility of a lawsuit, such as in a higher profile case like this. They need to know all the facts about Ms. Holden, just as they should check the truck driver. If one of my relatives died in similar circumstances, I would want all the facts on the table.

[SJE]

At least they are taking a cyclist's death seriously!

[dynaryder]

Greater Greater Washington has an article on this that explains the ruling pretty well: http://greatergreaterwashington.org/post.cgi?id=5550#more

[bArlington]

I am just awe struck. There can be no better case to make clear that this was not a "scofflaw biker". This was an innocent pedestrian run over by a truck that should not have been where it was. It is just amazing that you can but a huge truck where its not suppose to be, where failing to give the bike enough room is clear negligence, where the driver clear failed to "share the road"- and its an "accident." It is simply clear - a drivers license is a license to kill bikers. Over and over we here these stores and they always end with "no charges are pending." We MUST change. We have to change culture and we have to change the rules. Bikers are NOT killing automobile drivers. Cars are killing bikers. And they are doing it because they are not yielding and not giving enough room. They will not share the road - they thing they own it. For all that I here about people complaining about bikers - I have never heard one of those complaints causally linked to a death. But bikers get killed regularly for the misbehavior of cars. This is crazy.

[guez]

bArlington,

You should read the Greater Greater Washington post referenced above. The investigations is not closed.