Hit by car, do I have options?

[Mike95060]

I wanted to exhaust official channels before I turned to unofficial ones, hence my post here for people who know a lot more than I do.

Then again, I don't have a presence in the more sensationalist social media (TikTok, Instagram, FB, etc.) so I doubt I can suddenly insert myself there and create a stir.

Local channels... Does anyone watch OTA TV anymore?

I think if were me and I wasn't satisfied with the police response I would reach out to a local news station like https://www.nbcbayarea.com/ and see if they had any interest in getting the story out and looking for tips. If a group of people is out there throwing things from vehicles at cyclists, that's a story IMHO. If they did decide to do a piece on it, they would be the ones to put the story out on social media so you wouldn't have to deal with that bit.

 

[johnkol]

Interestingly, there don't appear to be any nearby flock cameras either. https://banishbigbrother.com/flock-camera-map/

Here are your Flock camera options,

Thanks to both of you!

I see that there is a Flock camera outside the Fremont PD, which is just 100 yards from where the individuals hit me, so if it continuously records license plate numbers of all passing cars, then it must have recorded the one of the car that hit me. Unfortunately no one was able to get the license plate number of the vehicle, only its colour and possible make/model, do Flock cameras record anything else other than license plate numbers?

 

[bojangle]

Thanks to both of you!

I see that there is a Flock camera outside the Fremont PD, which is just 100 yards from where the individuals hit me, so if it continuously records license plate numbers of all passing cars, then it must have recorded the one of the car that hit me. Unfortunately no one was able to get the license plate number of the vehicle, only its colour and possible make/model, do Flock cameras record anything else other than license plate numbers?

Yes, Fremont PD can, and likely already have, searched Flock by date, time, and vehicle description to get possible license plates, especially from the camera you mentioned.

For those stating they can't believe the police haven't done anything, or taking things so non chalantly, etc., what are you even basing this on? We don't know what was done or not done at this point.

Johnkol, you should contact the officer who took the report and get a status update. If you don't have the officer's info, or a case number, calling the non emergency number on a follow up call to this case should get you a call from someone. They can find the case number by your name/info.

You should also be able to get a copy of the report, as the victim of a crime.

 

[johnkol]

Johnkol, you should contact the officer who took the report and get a status update. If you don't have the officer's info, or a case number, calling the non emergency number on a follow up call to this case should get you a call from someone. They can find the case number by your name/info.

You should also be able to get a copy of the report, as the victim of a crime.

The officer that took my statement did give me his contact information, and I reached out to him this past Friday; he said that he has been unable to locate the vehicle, and no other similar incidents have been reported. However, he would continue to look out for similar cases.

I will contact him again in a few days to see if there has been any progress, and I will ask for the case number at that time.

 

[bojangle]

The officer that took my statement did give me his contact information, and I reached out to him this past Friday; he said that he has been unable to locate the vehicle, and no other similar incidents have been reported. However, he would continue to look out for similar cases.

I will contact him again in a few days to see if there has been any progress, and I will ask for the case number at that time.

When you contact him, I'd ask if they checked the Flock camera in front of the PD, which might have recorded the vehicle right before the incident. I know officers at my department develop leads quite frequently with Flock. Sometimes they lead to arrests and sometimes not.

Having said that, it can be very difficult to solve a random violence case like this, especially with such limited information. Even if they get a license plate from a vehicle that matches the description of the suspect vehicle from the Flock camera, right before the crime, that doesn't necessarily mean they can connect the vehicle to the case. And even if they can connect it to the case, identifying the suspect(s) are still yet another challenge.

What was this heavy bag they threw? Any chance there was any identifying information on or in it?

 

[johnkol]

When you contact him, I'd ask if they checked the Flock camera in front of the PD, which might have recorded the vehicle right before the incident. I know officers at my department develop leads quite frequently with Flock. Sometimes they lead to arrests and sometimes not.

Thank you, I would have never asked such a question because I wouldn't want to appear to be telling someone how to do their job, but since you are suggesting it I will do so. Following up on this, let me run something by you and let me know how outlandish this sounds:

I am very certain of the approximate time this incident took place (a ten minute window); the traffic was very light at that time, at most 40 cars could have gone by, so if Flock recorded their license plates, then it wouldn't be that hard to check those cars and see how many of them were red sedans (or Camrys). I presume an officer could go and ask the owners of those red sedans whether they witnessed the incident?

I understand your other points, that even if the vehicle was identified, how can you prove that it was the one that carried out the attack, or who was the perpetrator because it was certainly not the driver.

What was this heavy bag they threw? Any chance there was any identifying information on or in it?

I looked at the bag the next day (one of the people that stopped to help removed it from my bike and placed it on the side of the road); it was something like a five-pound food item bag that contained a creamy substance that resembled mashed potatoes, although I've never seen ready-made mashed potatoes being sold in a bag, and I was not going to taste it to find out what it really was. The bag itself was too mangled and torn to read what was written on it.

The officer actually did ask me about the bag, and I told him that it was on the side of the road, but I don't know if he ever went there to examine it.

 

[johnkol]

You gotta wonder why a person would hate on a cyclist enough to carry out attacks like this? Maybe it's because of the ones who act like elites blocking the road? Or the ones who ride reckless? Or they are just jealous that the cyclists don't have to wait in traffic? Regardless this BS is unacceptable!

Why do you have to wonder? Apart from holding up traffic, all the other things you mention are what motorcyclists do too, and we know there are plenty of car drivers that hate us and do try to hurt us - and I would hazard a guess that these are the same drivers that hate cyclists too.

 

[bojangle]

Thank you, I would have never asked such a question because I wouldn't want to appear to be telling someone how to do their job, but since you are suggesting it I will do so. Following up on this, let me run something by you and let me know how outlandish this sounds:

I am very certain of the approximate time this incident took place (a ten minute window); the traffic was very light at that time, at most 40 cars could have gone by, so if Flock recorded their license plates, then it wouldn't be that hard to check those cars and see how many of them were red sedans (or Camrys). I presume an officer could go and ask the owners of those red sedans whether they witnessed the incident?

I understand your other points, that even if the vehicle was identified, how can you prove that it was the one that carried out the attack, or who was the perpetrator because it was certainly not the driver.

That sounds about right. If you have a 10 minute window, and a max of 40 vehicles or so, there probably wouldn't be too many of them that match the description.

Ideally, there'd only be one likely car, but it's probably going to be a few. Flock will allow a search for a time frame, color red, and Toyota Camry... though if we're not positive about make and model, might want to first search under red sedan. So it's not like you'd even have to look at 40 vehicles. Just see what matches at that location and vehicle description. From there the officer can obtain registered owner info from the license plate.

If we got super lucky, and the Flock camera was that close, it would be really good evidence of it actually captured a still shot of the passenger holding the bag out the window ready to throw it.

Also, if this was just past Fremont PD, might they have other city owned live cameras, or LPR cameras, in the area, in addition to Flock? The Flock LPRs only take still images, but a city maintained video surveillance camera would have video footage, that could help.

Beyond that it becomes more tricky to identify the suspects involved. It's a little weaker, but even the driver could be charged as an accessory, or conspiracy, or something.

Finally, if the police were able to positively identify the vehicle, but never developed enough evidence to charge anyone for a crime, you could still use the information in the report for the registered owner of the car and talk to an attorney about a civil lawsuit. The standard of proof is a much lower preponderance of evidence in civil court compared to guilty beyond a reasonable doubt required to convict someone in criminal court.

 

[johnkol]

That sounds about right. If you have a 10 minute window, and a max of 40 vehicles or so, there probably wouldn't be too many of them that match the description.

Ideally, there'd only be one likely car, but it's probably going to be a few. Flock will allow a search for a time frame, color red, and Toyota Camry... though if we're not positive about make and model, might want to first search under red sedan. So it's not like you'd even have to look at 40 vehicles. Just see what matches at that location and vehicle description. From there the officer can obtain registered owner info from the license plate.

If we got super lucky, and the Flock camera was that close, it would be really good evidence of it actually captured a still shot of the passenger holding the bag out the window ready to throw it.

Also, if this was just past Fremont PD, might they have other city owned live cameras, or LPR cameras, in the area, in addition to Flock? The Flock LPRs only take still images, but a city maintained video surveillance camera would have video footage, that could help.

Beyond that it becomes more tricky to identify the suspects involved. It's a little weaker, but even the driver could be charged as an accessory, or conspiracy, or something.

Finally, if the police were able to positively identify the vehicle, but never developed enough evidence to charge anyone for a crime, you could still use the information in the report for the registered owner of the car and talk to an attorney about a civil lawsuit. The standard of proof is a much lower preponderance of evidence in civil court compared to guilty beyond a reasonable doubt required to convict someone in criminal court.

This is incredibly helpful information, thank you! I searched the web to figure out what information a Flock camera collects, but I came out thinking that it only records license plate numbers. If it also takes still images, this could be of great help because, as you say, it could have captured the incident at its most critical point.

I scoured the City of Fremont webpages to find out if they have any other cameras monitoring the city; they have very few, and none anywhere near where the incident took place. Moreover, on one side of that location is Fremont's Central Park (vast grass fields), so no cameras there, and on the other side townhouses with tall trees in between so no visibility to the road.

Do you think I can ask the officer the same question I asked you about the Flock camera and cross-checking license plate numbers with description of the vehicle, or would that be regarded as too invasive and thus it would be better if I asked him just a generic question on whether he checked the Flock camera?

 

[bojangle]

This is incredibly helpful information, thank you! I searched the web to figure out what information a Flock camera collects, but I came out thinking that it only records license plate numbers. If it also takes still images, this could be of great help because, as you say, it could have captured the incident at its most critical point.

I scoured the City of Fremont webpages to find out if they have any other cameras monitoring the city; they have very few, and none anywhere near where the incident took place. Moreover, on one side of that location is Fremont's Central Park (vast grass fields), so no cameras there, and on the other side townhouses with tall trees in between so no visibility to the road.

Do you think I can ask the officer the same question I asked you about the Flock camera and cross-checking license plate numbers with description of the vehicle, or would that be regarded as too invasive and thus it would be better if I asked him just a generic question on whether he checked the Flock camera?

Yeah, so Flock takes still photos of all vehicles that pass by. It will take photos of vehicles with no license plates as well. Then the LPR software also reads and provides the license plates to accompany the photos. They use infrared at night as well. Sometimes the LPR gets the license plate wrong, but you can see the correct plate in the photo, though it's usually correct. Sometimes we get alerts for stolen vehicles, only to look at the alert and photo and see the LPR got the plate wrong, and it wasn't really a stolen vehicle.

Anyways, it can identify vehicles by vehicle type, make, model, and color. You usually can't really tell who is driving from the photos though.

Provided the agency has an account with Flock and a camera at that location, which you said they do, any of their officers will be familiar with how it all works. I'd probably just ask more generally by saying that you understand there was a Flock camera right near the area of attack, and ask if they've check Flock or were able to get any leads on a suspect vehicle. I'd hope they would have already done this the same day of the report. I'd also be inclined to get a copy of the report from their records department. You might have to wait if the report still hasn't been approved or is still under investigation, but as a victim you should be able to get a copy. That report would show you what was done to investigate, if anything, and would contain any suspect information or investigative leads. Reports will generally have a disposition at the end to indicate if the report should be closed, if it's pending follow up, or if it's being filed with the D.A.

 

[CrazyCooter]

Why do you have to wonder? Apart from holding up traffic, all the other things you mention are what motorcyclists do too, and we know there are plenty of car drivers that hate us and do try to hurt us - and I would hazard a guess that these are the same drivers that hate cyclists too.

I certainly dislike behaviors of certain people who happen to ride bicycles, motos, horses, cars, truck drivers, etc.......I would never think to randomly attack anyone for any one of those reasons though....... Dehumanizing and attacking someone because of any one activity they do seems pretty insane to me? This is why I pretty much dislike most people by default and try to limit exposure.

These days I focus more on what that person is or has experienced that makes them act the way they do. If I'm having a bad day, I make sure that I'm not acting out on anyone else. Now this has much easier living where I do than the crazy retrace where many of our members live.

I literally just saw a post to a thread on BARF where the guy wrote "Bicycle people are very possibly the worst people on earth, so that is pretty weird." and I thought of your incident immediately. They are out there for sure........