No Charges For Hit-And-Run Sanitation Truck Driver Who Critically Injured Bushwick Cyclist
Aug. 10, 2018, 10:30 a.m.
'We believe he accidentally struck her, or she accidentally went into the vehicle—one of those circumstances occurred and she was injured.'
The Department of Sanitation driver who struck a cyclist in Bushwick earlier this month will not face charges, police said, despite fleeing the scene of the reportedly gruesome crash.
The NYPD has deemed the hit-and-run collision, which left a 25-year-old victim in critical condition, an "accident," Brooklyn Paper reports. "Both the bike rider and driver gave us their statements, there’s nothing else to investigate,” Sgt. Lee Jones explained to the paper. “We believe he accidentally struck her, or she accidentally went into the vehicle—one of those circumstances occurred and she was injured."
A spokesperson with the NYPD said the investigation was "ongoing," but confirmed to Gothamist that no charges or violations have been issued.
Took this video to show how tight it is on Evergreen Ave in Bushwick. Last night a city sanitation truck hit a bicyclist. Driver left the scene. Police investigating. More on #abc7NY https://t.co/aCNuTdvPdw pic.twitter.com/0exP1xYbov
— Derick Waller (@wallerABC7) August 2, 2018
The cyclist was struck on August 1st, while riding in a bike lane on Evergreen near Menahan Street—not far from where cyclist Leah Sylvain, 27, was killed by a truck driver two years ago. After hitting the woman, whose name has not been released, the DSNY employee continued driving, and was reportedly stopped by police at Varick Avenue and Mesorole Street, nearly two miles away.
The driver was taken into custody for questioning and released without charges, and police sources told the Daily News that he was "possibly oblivious" that he'd hit the woman.
The victim was rushed to Brookdale University Hospital, where she was stabilized. She suffered a broken clavicle and an open wound to her right arm, police said. “Half her arm was hanging off. It was awful,” one witness told the Post. "She was just laying in the bike lane, not really moving."
Following the incident, the Department of Sanitation said they were placing the driver on modified duty, and would be conducting their own internal investigation. The department did not respond to a Gothamist inquiry into the status of that investigation. An inquiry made to Teamsters Local 831, which represents about 6,000 sanitation workers, was also not returned.
We'll update if we hear back.
