# Grand jury does not indict trucker who struck and killed cyclist last August: Why not? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 7, 2013, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grand-jury-does-not-indict-trucker-who-struck-and-killed-cyclist-last-august-why-not/649640 "2013-02-07T21:15:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grand-jury-does-not-indict-trucker-who-struck-and-killed-cyclist-last-august-why-not/649640/21 "2013-02-08T16:23:12Z")
> [@RadicalPi](#): > > I don’t think this is true. Having your opinion match the grand jury’s, at least most of the time, is part of how the justice system maintains its legitimacy. Vigilance is the surest defender of freedom and all that. The grand jury heard several days of testimony. You read an article for 3 minutes. I don’t think that counts as vigilance. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grand-jury-does-not-indict-trucker-who-struck-and-killed-cyclist-last-august-why-not/649640/22 "2013-02-08T16:27:01Z")
> [@Zsofia](#): > > I just wish I’d heeded warnings and not read that police report. Maybe I was expecting worse considering the warnings but all I realy saw was just testimony that he’d been near the rear of the vehicle and was then apparently hit. Did I miss something? ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grand-jury-does-not-indict-trucker-who-struck-and-killed-cyclist-last-august-why-not/649640/23 "2013-02-08T16:38:17Z")
I have briefly read over the reports. Damn fine report by Carasquillo. Without knowing the actual testimony I could just guess that it was a problem with identification. They showed that the truck and driver were on that road around the time of the accident. But there seems to be conflicting accounts from eyewitnesses as to what the truck looked like. To me it looks like the police did everything they could and the case should have gone on but that might have been the problem. ---
**Author:** ![JerrySTL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e274bd/32.png) [@JerrySTL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JerrySTL)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grand-jury-does-not-indict-trucker-who-struck-and-killed-cyclist-last-august-why-not/649640/24 "2013-02-08T16:52:49Z")
I’m a cyclist myself. Many States have a 3-foot Rule for passing cyclists and pedestrians. Maybe the State where the accident happened needs something like it. If the case won’t go to a criminal trial, it’s time for a civil suit to sue the driver and company who hired him. Civil suits usually have less burden of evidence (is that the correct term?) than a criminal trial. If all else fails, I always say that there’s the legal system and there’s justice. Sometimes they aren’t the same and someone may need to apply some justice. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grand-jury-does-not-indict-trucker-who-struck-and-killed-cyclist-last-august-why-not/649640/25 "2013-02-08T16:59:04Z")
> [@lieu](#): > > Maybe I was expecting worse considering the warnings but all I realy saw was just testimony that he’d been near the rear of the vehicle and was then apparently hit. Did I miss something? You may have missed some pages - the first link has several and you have to scroll down. There were some details from the first officer on the scene about what happened when they tried to use a breathing bag on the victim that I won’t forget any time soon. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grand-jury-does-not-indict-trucker-who-struck-and-killed-cyclist-last-august-why-not/649640/26 "2013-02-08T17:00:36Z")
> [@JerrySTL](#): > > I’m a cyclist myself. Many States have a 3-foot Rule for passing cyclists and pedestrians. Maybe the State where the accident happened needs something like it. > > If the case won’t go to a criminal trial, it’s time for a civil suit to sue the driver and company who hired him. Civil suits usually have less burden of evidence (is that the correct term?) than a criminal trial. > > If all else fails, I always say that there’s the legal system and there’s justice. Sometimes they aren’t the same and someone may need to apply some justice. There will probably be a civil suit, but if the question is whether this was truck involved, they’ll have a tough time too. The burden is lower in a civil suit than a criminal trial, but not lower than what the grand jury had to find (probable cause). ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grand-jury-does-not-indict-trucker-who-struck-and-killed-cyclist-last-august-why-not/649640/27 "2013-02-08T17:04:51Z")
> [@Zsofia](#): > > There were some details from the first officer on the scene about what happened when they tried to use a breathing bag on the victim that I won’t forget any time soon. Oh, yeah, not sure that’ll help understand what happened any better and will skip that part, thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grand-jury-does-not-indict-trucker-who-struck-and-killed-cyclist-last-august-why-not/649640/28 "2013-02-08T17:06:51Z")
> [@Zsofia](#): > > You may have missed some pages - the first link has several and you have to scroll down. There were some details from the first officer on the scene about what happened when they tried to use a breathing bag on the victim that I won’t forget any time soon. Been to too many actual fatal accidents I guess. It effected me about as much as reading Winnie the Pooh. ---
**Author:** ![Barrett\_Bonden](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/5e9695/32.png) [@Barrett\_Bonden](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barrett_Bonden)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grand-jury-does-not-indict-trucker-who-struck-and-killed-cyclist-last-august-why-not/649640/29 "2013-02-08T17:08:33Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > I have briefly read over the reports. Damn fine report by Carasquillo. Without knowing the actual testimony I could just guess that it was a problem with identification. They showed that the truck and driver were on that road around the time of the accident. But there seems to be conflicting accounts from eyewitnesses as to what the truck looked like. To me it looks like the police did everything they could and the case should have gone on but that might have been the problem. Thanks. I was hoping you might show up and offer some insight. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grand-jury-does-not-indict-trucker-who-struck-and-killed-cyclist-last-august-why-not/649640/30 "2013-02-08T17:13:42Z")
> [@Barrett\_Bonden](#): > > Thanks. I was hoping you might show up and offer some insight. If the article is correct and several days of testimony were given, I’m sure there was much more than what was in the reports shown. So not having been there I don’t know how much insight I can really give. Grand jury’s can be weird creatures. They have a lot more leeway than petit juries. The can ask questions of witnesses and pursue their own line of questions. ---
**Author:** ![Merneith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@Merneith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merneith)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grand-jury-does-not-indict-trucker-who-struck-and-killed-cyclist-last-august-why-not/649640/31 "2013-02-08T17:40:32Z")
> [@Magiver](#): > > Did I completely misread the report? I thought the bike was hit by a trailer behind the truck. No, that’s correct. I should have specified that it was the trailer portion which hit the cyclist. It seems plausible to me that the trucker might not notice that. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grand-jury-does-not-indict-trucker-who-struck-and-killed-cyclist-last-august-why-not/649640/32 "2013-02-08T18:25:58Z")
> [@RadicalPi](#): > > Vigilance is the surest defender of freedom and all that. Reading what blogs, YouTube and your next door neighbor say is not “vigilance.” If we don’t concede that a grand jury gets all the relevant evidence and makes their decision based on the law, then we may as well just go back to lynching. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grand-jury-does-not-indict-trucker-who-struck-and-killed-cyclist-last-august-why-not/649640/33 "2013-02-08T19:09:46Z")
Exactly. I sat on a GJ once. You can’t reasonably make up you mind that they were wrong after getting less that a hundredth of the testimony they heard & saw. He wasn’t indicted \*as the entirety of the evidence presented \*(which dudes here have not seen) did not support it. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grand-jury-does-not-indict-trucker-who-struck-and-killed-cyclist-last-august-why-not/649640/34 "2013-02-08T19:22:42Z")
Random thoughts: By the description of the rider he was wearing a spandex cyclist outfit which suggests he was a serious rider and not a bike path kind of guy. Kinda looked like a bike path in the picture. I wonder if the truck caught the cyclist by surprise and, not knowing there was a trailer in tow, he swung a little right for clearance and then back left after the truck passed. I would really like to see the video mentioned if anybody found it. ---
**Author:** ![Barrett\_Bonden](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/5e9695/32.png) [@Barrett\_Bonden](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barrett_Bonden)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grand-jury-does-not-indict-trucker-who-struck-and-killed-cyclist-last-august-why-not/649640/35 "2013-02-08T19:39:53Z")
> [@Magiver](#): > > I would really like to see the video mentioned if anybody found it. There’s a screen cap of the video [here](http://www.prweb.com/releases/2013/2/prweb10405890.htm). I haven’t found the actual video anywhere. ---
**Author:** ![newme](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e0b2c6/32.png) [@newme](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/newme)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grand-jury-does-not-indict-trucker-who-struck-and-killed-cyclist-last-august-why-not/649640/36 "2013-02-08T20:15:42Z")
Apparently the family has now[filed a civil suit:](http://www.wcvb.com/news/local/metro-west/Family-sues-after-no-criminal-charges-to-be-filed-in-fatal-Wellesley-crash/-/11983044/18399808/-/format/rsss_2.0/-/2m0gioz/-/index.html) > [@](#): > > The family of a bicyclist struck and killed by a truck has filed a lawsuit against the driver and his employer after learning that no criminal charges would be filed, Team 5 investigates reported Monday. The link also has video purportedly of the truck and cyclist moments before the accident. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2013, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grand-jury-does-not-indict-trucker-who-struck-and-killed-cyclist-last-august-why-not/649640/37 "2013-02-09T05:33:52Z")
> [@newme](#): > > Apparently the family has now[filed a civil suit:](http://www.wcvb.com/news/local/metro-west/Family-sues-after-no-criminal-charges-to-be-filed-in-fatal-Wellesley-crash/-/11983044/18399808/-/format/rsss_2.0/-/2m0gioz/-/index.html) > > The link also has video purportedly of the truck and cyclist moments before the accident. I’m not sure why the video stopped but the location of the bike was beyond the railroad overpass and just passed the next intersecting street. Either the cyclist was sprinting to keep up with the truck or got hooked on the trailer and then pulled under (further down the road). I thought by the description it was a dump truck. This was a full size rig pulling a trailer. I don’t wish to negate the responsibility of the truck driver but I would have taken the sidewalk if I saw it coming. Just today on the way to work I had an 18 wheeler cut me off on the highway. Not much I could do but give way and I have a steel frame surrounding me. A bicyclist has air. ---
**Author:** ![Rand\_Rover](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/db5fbb/32.png) [@Rand\_Rover](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rand_Rover)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2013, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grand-jury-does-not-indict-trucker-who-struck-and-killed-cyclist-last-august-why-not/649640/38 "2013-02-09T14:20:17Z")
> [@RadicalPi](#): > > I don’t think this is true. Having your opinion match the grand jury’s, at least most of the time, is part of how the justice system maintains its legitimacy. This is just gross. It is odd that you like to participate on a messageboard dedicated to fighting ignorance. ---
**Author:** ![RadicalPi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/radicalpi/32/9806_2.png) [@RadicalPi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RadicalPi)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2013, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grand-jury-does-not-indict-trucker-who-struck-and-killed-cyclist-last-august-why-not/649640/39 "2013-02-10T00:06:27Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#): > > This assumes that the grand jury and the average joe have received all of the same information on which to base their judgment, which is rarely the case. I get what you’re saying, but I don’t believe that the knowledge gap is the most relevant thing. The _perception_ of legitimacy is highly important for creating the actual legitimacy of the system. The pomp and circumstance is important as well. None of these things would change the facts of course, but that’s not what I’m talking about. > [@Loach](#): > > The grand jury heard several days of testimony. You read an article for 3 minutes. I don’t think that counts as vigilance. > [@NitroPress](#): > > Reading what blogs, YouTube and your next door neighbor say is not “vigilance.” > > If we don’t concede that a grand jury gets all the relevant evidence and makes their decision based on the law, then we may as well just go back to lynching. I didn’t read the article or blogs or anything at all except this thread, actually. I’m not referring to this case in particular either, but to the judicial process in general. I was responding to **Rand Rover** ’s comments. The idea is that if the public and the grand jury disagree _too often_ that there is no reason to believe (1) that the grand jury is getting the relevant evidence, (2) that it is making decisions based on the law, or (3) that the law itself is reasonable. > [@Rand\_Rover](#): > > This is just gross. It is odd that you like to participate on a messageboard dedicated to fighting ignorance. It’s not odd in the slightest. I’m not saying that the grand jury made the wrong decision. I’m thinking of some of the broader implications of the judicial system, in particular your claim that the decisions of a grand jury are not subject to criticism. They most certainly are. ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2013, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grand-jury-does-not-indict-trucker-who-struck-and-killed-cyclist-last-august-why-not/649640/40 "2013-02-10T04:50:02Z")
> [@Magiver](#): > > … My feeling is that while the bicyclist had the right of way he brought about his own demise. The lady in the Mercedes stated that she thought the rider had guts riding down a hill with a large truck coming up behind him… > [@Magiver](#): > > …I don’t wish to negate the responsibility of the truck driver but I would have taken the sidewalk if I saw it coming. This cite is from Penna, but as it’s instructions & not specific laws by section it should also apply for Mass or any other state [PA Bicycle Driver’s Manual](http://www.dot.state.pa.us/Internet/Bureaus/pdBikePed.nsf/infoChapterTwo?OpenForm) > [@](#): > > Generally, the more you follow the normal traffic pattern, the safer and more predictable you become. > [@](#): > > It’s much safer to ride in a predictable, straight line, where everyone can see you. Motorists don’t mind slowing down for a predictable, visible bicyclist nearly as much as theymind a bicyclist who swerves out in front of them. > [@](#): > > Understand that the law is on your side. The law gives you the right to use the road, the same as a motorist, and to make other traffic slow down for you sometimes. Since you don’t have eyes in the back of your head, you can’t be expected to keep track of the traffic behind you at all times. From the video that I saw, there appears to be a curb separating the road from the sidewalk, which means the cyclist would need to stop to get up on the sidewalk & then either stop again or ride down it to get back into the traffic lane both of which are making a cyclist not follow the normal traffic pattern & therefore unpredictable. Please don’t blame the cyclist for doing what he was instructed to do. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grand-jury-does-not-indict-trucker-who-struck-and-killed-cyclist-last-august-why-not/649640.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grand-jury-does-not-indict-trucker-who-struck-and-killed-cyclist-last-august-why-not/649640.md?page=3)