The driver who accidentally hit and killed Cincinnati cyclist Andrew Gast, 27, along Wilmer Avenue in the East end last year on Aug. 29, 2012 will be sentenced by a judge on Monday, July 22.
More than 700 riders attended a “ghost ride” to support Gast and his family following his death. According to a press release from local bicycle advocacy organization Queen City Bike, Melvin White was originally charged with two counts of aggravated vehicular homicide after police investigated the accident, which took place early, around 6 a.m., on a foggy morning.
Following an investigation, however, police found that although White was speeding at the time of the accident and was following Gast too closely, there were not factors at play to warrant an “aggravated” charge. His defense accepted a plea deal from prosecutors in which White pleaded guilty to one count of vehicular homicide, the maximum penalty for which is six months in jail and/or a $1,000 fine.
According to the press release, the Cincinnati Cycle Club and Queen City Bike are requesting that White receive the maximum penalty.
Gast did, as required by law, have both a front-end light and a rear-end light on his bike at the time of the crash. His death was the first of two Cincinnati cyclist fatalities to occur in a two-week period last fall; 59-year-old Ronald Richardson of Bond Hill was struck and killed by a Metro bus driver when he swerved into the bus’s path on Sept. 11, 2012, around 8:30 p.m., when it was also dark outside. Both Richardson and Gast where pedaling along the side of the road when they were hit.
Although the Cincinnati Cycle Club and Queen City Bike are expected to make a joint statement to the court officially requesting the maximum penalty, they’re also asking that White donate to Queen City Blinkies, a program that distributes and installs free bike lights to the Cincinnati cycling community, in lieu of a court fine.
Under Ohio law, bicycles are considered vehicles are allowed to ride on the road, where they must obey all municipal traffic laws. See the city of Cincinnati’s “Pocket Bike Law Guide” here.
White will be sentenced at 10:30 a.m. Monday, July 22 at the Hamilton County Court House on 1000 Main St. downtown.
This article appears in Jul 17-23, 2013.
