Police Search for Driver in Fatal Accident Involving Bicyclist

Even though it is legal for bicycles to share the roads with motorized vehicles, the danger to riders is always a concern. Louisiana bicyclists often suffer serious and even deadly injuries if they are involved in a motor vehicle accident. Occasionally, a driver fails to stop after hitting a bicycle rider, and the victim’s family is left wondering whether a fatal accident would have been survivable if the rider had received emergency medical treatment.
Friends and family may be asking this question in connection with the death of a local artist in the Big Easy. Police say that the rider was hit and left for dead. By the time emergency responders arrived at the scene, it was too late to save his life. Now, officials have released a photograph of a vehicle believed to be the same make and model that was involved in the crash.
New Orleans police expect the vehicle to have damage to the front passenger side that is most likely significant. While police search for the vehicle and driver responsible for the man’s death, a memorial “ghost bike” was placed by the victim’s friends at the intersection where the accident occurred. His girlfriend hopes that his death will increase awareness of bicycle riders and urges drivers to stop if one is hit.
The artist’s family retains the right to file a wrongful death claim against the driver police believe is responsible or this fatal accident, once he or she is apprehended. If a Louisiana court rules that the man’s death was due to the negligence of that individual, the family might receive a judgment for the monetary damages it sustained in the aftermath of his death. Such an award could help defray their financial losses and perhaps provide some sense of closure regarding the tragedy.