bike talk
Crash Money Hit-and-runs are on the rise, but state funds can help victims recover
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t was just after midnight on June 30, 2018, and Ag Manta and his brother, Vin, were riding their bicycles home from Main Street in Manayunk toward the path along Kelly Drive. Manta remembers the driver of a gray Scion taunting them from behind, using homophobic slurs. Then things escalated. Manta remembers hearing screeching tires before being hit from behind by the driver. He hit a telephone pole and watched the driver speed off through three red lights. These incidents are very unsettling, but it’s important to discuss them because they are happening more and more. Motor vehicle crashes have spiked in Philadelphia (and other cities throughout the 8 GR ID P H I L LY.CO M NOVEM B E R 2020
country) during the pandemic. Hit-and-runs are on the rise and, despite fewer vehicles on the road, crashes are way up compared to 2019. According to official police data on OpenDataPhilly.org, there have been 20 more traffic deaths and injuries this year than the same time period last year—up 37%. While advocates work on ways to slow down reckless motorists, those affected by traffic violence should understand what rights they have. As a mechanic at Keystone Bikes, Manta had encountered several people over the years who’d gotten into bike crashes, and he knew how to handle the situation. Manta and his brother called the police and filed a report. Another friend quickly
by
randy lobasso
came and drove him to Thomas Jefferson University Hospital. “Luckily, I had some friends nearby,” Manta says. In the coming days, Manta’s left hand was sore and swollen, and he had a large bruise on his upper right thigh. He was also left with conflicted feelings about the crash. He’d been taunted and assaulted by the driver, who still hadn’t been identified. He reached out to Stuart Leon Bicycle Crash Law to take on his case; the firm immediately got to work, both laying out Manta’s legal rights and trying to find the driver. Father-son attorneys Stuart and Zach Leon put up 50 “witnesses wanted” posters within two blocks in each direction of the IL LUSTRATIO N BY S EAN RY NKEWI CZ