Washington Injury Law Blog

A Portland, Oregon vigilante bicyclist yelled at and leaned into a passing car and tried to grab the driver of car becase the car had been tailgating a group of bicyclists.  The car driver and a back-seat passenger grabbed the bicyclist, 31 year-old Kevin Stevenson, pulled him from his bike and dragged him 150 feet down Portland street.  Stevenson suffered burn injuries to his heels, legs, knees, shoulder and back.

Stevenson in my opinion got what he deserved.  If you chase down a car in anger for tailgating you as a bicycle rider, you are the assailant and aggressor and should not be surprised when you receive similar treatment in response.  Was it right for the car to grab and drag him 150 feet down the road, of course not.  Do two wrongs make a right, no.  Both bicycle rider and car driver were in the wrong and someone got seriously hurt.  Had Stevenson exercised a little patience and forgiveness he may have avoided injury.

As a Washington Bicycle Accident Lawyer I can tell you that Stevenson may be tempted to bring an injury claim against the car.  If he walked in my office, I would show him the door soon thereafter.  This one falls into the category of are you kidding me, you started the fight!  No juror is ever going to excuse Stevenson for his aggression and will in all likelihood punish him for wasting their time in bringing what would no doubt be considered a frivolous claim.

Bicyclist have a hard enough time getting cars to share the road with them.  This type of conduct by a bicyclist does nothing but reinforce the bias against bicyclists that many vehicle drivers already have.  Do as my grandfather always taught…follow the Golden rule, treat others how you would want them to treat you!

Ride safe and share the road!

Max Meyers, Esq.