Hit and Run Justice Fund

St. Louis Regional Bicycle Federation offers reward for info on hit and run

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Patty Vinyard:  314-707-5001                                                                      

ST. LOUIS, MO-January 30, 2008. The St. Louis Regional Bicycle Federation has just launched a fund to offer a reward of $1,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person driving the vehicle that struck and injured a bicyclist at the corner of Cole and Broadway this past Monday evening and left the scene. Contributions are being collected at the organization's website: http://www.stlbikefed.org/. Anyone with information about the incident should contact the police at 314-444-2520.

"This effort is completely grassroots," said Russ Willis, chair of the Bike Fed's committee on policy and advocacy.  "We had hundreds of dollars in pledges even before we made the fund official. The ‘Hit and Run Justice Fund' will continue even after this case. Especially now, with motorists being pushed off highway 40/64 and onto surface roads, there is a heightened awareness among cyclists of the difficulties of sharing the roads with motorists," Willis emphasized.

Willis said the Bike Fed intends to work with City Police Chief Joe Mokwa and City Prosecutor Jennifer Joyce to implement the reward. "The police and prosecutor will determine whether the information they receive is enough to go on. Anyone with information should contact the police directly, not the Bike Fed."

The incident occurred Monday evening, January 28, at about 5:40 p.m. as the cyclist, who has not been publicly identified, was crossing Broadway at Cole on a mountain bike. He was struck by a motorist driving a dark SUV, who then left the scene. The cyclist was seriously injured.

"Obviously we want to see this motorist prosecuted for leaving the scene," Willis continued, "and possibly for vehicular assault."

The circumstances of the incident are not yet known. But Willis said, "I don't care if the cyclist was going the wrong way with his eyes closed. If you are driving a motor vehicle, you must pay attention, you don't run down cyclists and pedestrians, and you don't leave the scene."

About the St. Louis Regional Bicycle Federation

The St. Louis Regional Bicycle Federation is a membership organization working to make the St. Louis region more friendly, safe, and accessible to people on bicycles through educational outreach, advocacy, and improved facilities.

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