PERRIS: Bicyclist, 12, dies after collision
By LUCIA WALINCHUS - lwalinchus@californian.com | Posted: Tuesday, October 27, 2009 5:25 pm
PERRIS---- A 12-year-old boy died after he was hit by a pickup truck while riding his bike, authorities said.
About 5:45 p.m. Monday, Randy Vargas, 12, of Perris rode his bicycle out of a driveway and into Jarvis Street, just south of Wallace Avenue. He was a hit by a Toyota Tacoma traveling northbound on Jarvis, according to a news release from the California Highway Patrol.
Officers said the driver, Ralph Palmieri, 31, of Lake Elsinore tried to stop, but couldn't avoid Vargas.
Vargas, who was not wearing a helmet at the time of the crash, was taken to Inland Valley Medical Center for head and internal injuries.
Note the apparent car-centric bias in the framing of this event: The journalist points out that the 12-year-old cyclist was not wearing a helmet but fails to provide the speed that the motorist was traveling. The journalist never addresses whether or not the motorist was speeding--an illegal activity which increases the likeliness of death in the event of a collision.
If the motorist was speeding on the same block moments before the collision, we hope and expect justice to be served.
Our condolences to the family and friends of 12-year-old Randy Vargas.
I wonder if the motorist was wearing a helmet, or his seat belt, when he killed the kid. I'm all for helmets, but I don't think a helmets gonna do much for a 12 year old kid when he gets run over by a truck.
ReplyDeleteSad story. Good point about motorist speed. It seems that most journalists don't treat driving as a variable in cyclist and pedestrian injuries/deaths - but treat it as a given.
ReplyDeletePoor Randy, He was just a baby. And a good kid too. Regardless of the circumstances, prayer is needed for his brothers and sister, mother and father, grandparents, friends, and countless others that he has warmed the heart of during his short time with us. May God be with his family in this time of devastation. CB
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