Cyclist fractures pedestrian's skull, gets $400 fine

The intersection of Dundas St. W. and Huron St. is very busy as seen from the southeast corner on Wednesday. A cyclist was charged after a woman was knocked over and left with serious head injuries. (RICHARD LAUTENS/TORONTO STAR)

Brendan Kennedy and Curtis Rush, Staff Reporters

A cyclist who was going the wrong way on a one-way street when he struck a 56-year-old woman and fractured her skull will be fined $400, whether the woman lives or dies.

In a case that raises questions about the strength of the province's traffic laws, the 49-year-old man — whose name was not released — was charged with careless driving under the Highway Traffic Act. He faces no criminal charges or jail time.

RELATED STORY: Does the punishment fit the deed?

The incident occurred Tuesday, before 11 a.m., in Chinatown at the intersection of Dundas and Huron Sts., just east of Spadina Ave. The woman, who was crossing Huron on the south side, fell back after she was struck by the cyclist, hitting her head on the road. She suffered severe head trauma and was rushed to hospital, where she remains.

Police say they lay charges based on the offence, not the outcome, and there was no criminal intent on the part of the cyclist.

“If [the woman] dies that’s going to be handled in civil courts,” said Toronto police Const. Hugh Smith.

But critics charge the province’s careless driving law should distinguish careless acts that cause serious injury or death from those that don’t.

“People that are driving carelessly need to realize that when they kill another human being that person is gone forever,” said Daryl Bowles, whose father was killed in a careless driving accident in 2008. “And it’s not fair the person that’s responsible gets a slap on the wrist.”

Careless driving carries a fine ranging from $400 to $2,000, licence restrictions and potentially up to six months of jail time. It is the highest charge under the Highway Traffic Act.

Motorists and cyclists are treated equally under the act, though a cyclist does not suffer any penalties against their licence, such as demerit points or a suspension.

Motorists who injure or kill someone can be charged under the Criminal Code if they are deemed to have been driving dangerously. The difference between dangerous driving, a criminal offence, and careless driving, a traffic offence, lies in intent.

To be charged with dangerous driving, police must prove a driver planned and intended to do something dangerous, such as race or dart in and out of traffic. Careless driving, defined as driving “without due care and attention,” refers to a lapse of judgment.

A cyclist could not be charged with dangerous driving because the offence only covers motorized vehicles. But if there was evidence of intent, Smith said a cyclist could still be charged with assault or another appropriate criminal offence.

Police say the cyclist in Tuesday’s incident travelled southbound on Huron through the intersection with Dundas — where Huron becomes a one-way street in the opposite direction — and struck the woman, who was crossing the road on the south side with two other people.

A motorist committing the same act may have been charged criminally with dangerous driving causing bodily harm, Smith said, because it would be a more obviously dangerous situation. But recent cases of careless driving deaths suggest drivers are, in general, treated similarly.

An 18-year-old Mississauga man, who killed Eduardo and Fernandina Pascoal with his car last year, pleaded guilty to careless driving earlier this month and was ordered to pay a $1,000 fine.

In May, a 39-year-old truck driver in Brampton pleaded guilty to failing to yield and was fined $500 for the death of Tina Kuipers, 65, who was killed as she tried to cross Queen St. in Brampton last year.

“There are a lot of variations of careless driving, and if you actually kill someone there should be a much steeper penalty,” said Bowles, who created an online petition pushing for tougher penalties at familiesfightingcarelessdriving.com.

Bowles’ petition — which has more than 2,000 signatures — calls for a new law specifically for careless driving causing death, which would include automatic jail sentences and a spectrum of stiffer penalties.

Although the cyclist in this case was given the minimum fine, the injured woman or her family may pursue a civil litigation, Smith said.

“He may escape the provincial court for this offence; it doesn’t mean there’s not going to be thousands of thousands of dollars later.”

Tickets given to cyclists

2008 – 3629

2009 – 4010

2010 – 6773

2011 – 2464 (as of May 31)

Source: Toronto police (tickets include equipment infractions)

Comments

[Fenn]

I'm a cyclist and just to be clear I STOP at red lights and go the right way down one ways. Many do sadly you don't notice them for the ones that skip right over reds. Many go backwards down one ways as it's safer than going on main streets. Still think we don't need bike lanes? I hope the woman pulls through and sues the bike shorts off of him.

[soah]

Time to tighten ALL laws against cyclists!

[Corey]

Brutal, this is why there needs to be more enforcement on cyclists and fines need to be changed. When walking downtown I see maybe 1 in 50 cyclists actually abiding by the rules. They seem to be in a grey area where police will not waste their time to setup frequent traps or police them constantly. If this happened to one of my friend's or family and I was on scene I would probably get in trouble for yelling at the cyclist while they get away with almost killing someone. Something just doesn't make sense here!

[Percy Brik]

Cyclists do not deserve their own lanes on major streets. They treat bicycles like fast pedestrians, and not like vehicles. They veer into tiny spaces, ride on sidewalks, go the wrong way on one way streets, and are often impossible to see in mirrors because they are all over the place. We need to review and reform bicycle laws: articulate clear guidelines for them, and employ new laws that have teeth and reflect the preponderance of bicycles on the streets today.

PerceptiveB

[Steve_YYZ]

For all those cyclists out there that think they rule the roadway....... Just remember that unlike a motorist with insurance, any damage awards will come directly out of your pocket. How does the sound of being several hundred thousand dollars in debt sound to you? Just think, house/condo re-possessed, wages garnisheed, personal bankruptcy. Just some of the outcomes possible when you cause an accident such as this. My thoughts and prayers go out to this innocent pedestrian and let's hope for a full recovery. Then sue his a$$ off.

[DerekL]

Bicycles are not the same as cars!! I've been saying this for years. Bicycles are not cars, and they should be treated differently than drivers of vehicles. They should not be on the road "pretending" to be a car, and thinking they have the same rights. On the flip side, if something happens while on a bike, you can't treat them the same as if it were a motorized vehicle. What is this about going down a one-way street? I'm sorry, but are you allowed to "walk" the wrong way down a one-way street? (the answer is yes) Then you should be allowed to take your bike down a one-way street. I didn't know one ways pertained to bikes as well! That fact is misleading and should not be mentioned in the article. Bottom line is accidents happen, and fining him, or any other punishment won't prevent another accident from happening, because it is an ACCIDENT. And gimme a break whoever mentioned that he should be charged with vehicular manslaughter. Don't even get me started with that.

[D C]

If the cycling community of Toronto has any integrity, it will be out there demonstrating today against the reckless actions of this cyclist.

Cyclists are sure up in arms when one of their own is injured by a car, but they seem to lose all humanity when it comes to one of their own being clearly at fault.

Shame on all cyclists if there is no show of support for the victim in this case.

[Rustee24]

Well, that should put an end to the cycling communities ridiculous contention that they never cause harm. Time for these immature cyclists to join reality and start obeying the HTA, and time for the cops to start earning their money and stop ignoring the red-light running and blasting the wrong way down one-way streets

[raj]

regardless of the intentions, when a cyclist or motorist injure he/she should be charged as a criminal first. Then let them to defend themselves. Ignoring others' safety is indeed a crime. As a pedestrian, I have come across many motorist who aggeressively drive toward me while I am crossing any signal. Put policemen on plain clothes, you will find many criminal acts of motorists. Sometimes, people blames police. we should remember that they are dealing with criminals every day on the job. It is very stressful when dealing with criminals. Just fining $400 is not enough.

[sump]

I think there needs to be a lot more accountability for cyclists. They wine about how they want their own lanes but they can barely follow the current laws set upon them. When it's red you stop, green you go. I explained this to a 3 year old child and they figured it out fairly quickly, so why does it take a cyclist almost killing someone before common sense becomes common?

[Dave]

Life is not like the NHL. The idea that punishments should be based on outcomes rather than intent is ludicrous, has nothing to do with justice, and everything to do with revenge. Explain to me how it would be fair or serve justice if 10000 people go the wrong way down a one way street and the one person unlucky enough to hit a pedestrian must go to jail.

Shit happens, even when you follow all the rules - get used to it.

[Bramblerose1]

This is just wrong on so many levels. Cyclists must be held accountable for the harm they do just as much as motorists are. If this woman dies, the cyclist should be charged under the criminal code, not the civil - and the message should go out to ALL cyclists that they are on notice. No more breaking traffic laws (including the stop sign issue - they're there for a reason!) willy-nilly just because you're on two wheels instead of four. Cyclists can cause severe harm, even death, just as much as a 2-tonne vehicle can and their flagrant disregard for traffic laws and safety has culminated in this terrible event.

[Nik]

Only in Canada.

[Tom]

People have often been charged with criminal negligence (eg. "causing bodily harm" or "death"), which is a criminal offence, when a simple careless driving won't do. However, sometimes accidents do happen. Not every deserves to rot in jail because they ride their bikes the wrong way on an empty street. I'd like to know what the cyclist did AFTER he hit her, as that says more about his character than anything I've seen yet.

[Gloria]

A pedestrian told me that she was hit on the sidewalk in Kensington Market by a cyclist, and knocked to the ground and missed a couple of weeks work, and the police officer at the scene refused to charge the cyclist. He said it was a personal injury.

[shivadiva]

These laws need to be changed to reflect the severity of injuries that vehicles can cause pedestrians especially now that scooters, e-bikes, motorized bicycles riderss are taking over PEDESTRIAN WALKWAYS with no thought nor regard to the safety of the pedestrian including mothers with kids and strollers.

[Jeff]

It is wrong to punish result. Why does a death change something from being merely "careless" and "administrative" to something that is criminal? If I fail to yeild and the pediestrian (say a stronger, young person) is merely injured, why should I get off Scot free, compared to someone who fails to yeild and kills an more frail pediestrian?

Central to criminal law is the idea of intent. Killing someone isn't "murder" unless you meant to do it. Taking stuff from a store isn't "theft" unless you meant to steal. Same with criminal charges related to driving--the criminal law must only punish criminal intent.

[Kitten]

This is absolutely appalling. I hope her family nails his ass to the wall in a civil suit. If this isn't an indication that the laws need changing I don't know what is and the powers that be should be ashamed of themselves for this grotesque lapse in the law.