Wednesday, July 09, 2008

LAPD arrests motorist for assault with deadly weapon

Update Nov. 2 2009: Dr. Christopher Thompson tried and convicted of all seven counts against him.



Christopher Thompson is an emergency room doctor who sent to cyclists to the hospital with his car.
A motorist was arrested after he allegedly swerved in front of two bicyclists during an argument over rights to the road and caused them to crash into his car, police said.

Christopher Thompson, 58, was arrested Friday for investigation of assault with a deadly weapon—the car—and booked into jail, Officer Ana Aguirre, a police spokeswoman, said Tuesday.

Thompson allegedly argued with the bikers who were crossing his path on a narrow road and pulled in front of them, slamming on the brakes, she said.

The bicyclists were taken to a hospital for treatment of moderate injuries.
Read more. See also:

LAist has the juicy personal details on Dr. Thompson. They also note, "There are other Dr. Christopher Thompsons in the Los Angeles area who work in medicine and unfortunately some are being wrongly threatened."

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

moderate injuries? 90 stitches to the face to reattach a nose for the one bloke, and a shoulder bone protruding from his jersey for the other. yeah. moderate. what would it take to label them severe?

bikesgonewild said...

...i hope the judge "gets" the intent in this & acts accordingly...

...if this ex-doctor doesn't do time, there is something wrong here...if he'd pulled up alongside & shot but not killed these riders, he'd definitely still be going away...his lawyer is already playing it up & the guy will act contrite when it's needed & ultimately will never pay the price he should be paying for his actions...

...what an amazingly deplorable situation...

Dustin Jensen said...

While this is a very unfortunate situation, I'm glad to see the lethality of vehicles recognized. As a bike commuter I've been intimidated and threaten by a vehicle numerous times~~often by normal everyday looking people. I don't see any difference to this behavior and waving a gun in someone's face for walking too slow, and in this case actually shooting them.

It is extremely absurd that the DA would have to even consider weather to press charges. This is an issue that really needs to be taken more seriously. Unfortunately, it appears that people who have never had to share the road with a "Death Machine" just don't understand how dangerous it can be.

Jennifer said...

eep

Jennifer said...

"Bicyclists who crave a steady uphill climb flock to Mandeville Canyon Road and its 5-mile, straight-shot ascent with no traffic lights.

"But the route's rising popularity has turned the narrow road into a zone of conflict for Brentwood residents and the hundreds of cyclists who, every weekend, brave its twists, turns and tree-root bumps..."


Hmm, nice car-headed reporting in the LA Times. Crazy cyclists who want to ride uphill for fun block traffic for the good people who live there; conflict was inevitable. Blah blah.

Rick Logue said...

If you want to keep your blood pressure under control, avoid the comments in the LA Times article. 160 people claiming the cyclists deserved it

murphstahoe said...

They sent the road rager guy in Chicago away for 45 years (for murder). Here's hoping this guy does at least 10. I think it's very possible.