> If you accidentally kill somebody on a bike you’re likely to serve prison time for manslaughter.
The sad reality is that people recklessly kill cyclists and barely get a slap on the wrist.
The sad reality is that people recklessly kill cyclists and barely get a slap on the wrist.
I think it is because the overwhelming number of drivers (in the US) haven't ridden a bike since they were children. A judge and most of the jurors fall into that category, and they empathize with the driver, as they could imagine themselves doing the exact same thing that the driver did.
From my own experience interacting with cyclists on the road, the riskiest situations I saw were ones the cyclist created. Eg. Running reds, doing 15+ mph on the sidewalk, lane-splitting, etc.
In the UK the most common cause of cycling fatalities is being rear ended. Risky behaviour by cyclists is rarely to blame for accidents.
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2009/dec/15/cycling...
However, just like with drivers, often times the cyclists have negligent (or reckless) factors against them as well, which is often used to downplay the contribution of any reckless or negligent actions of the driver. For example, about 20% of cyclist-vehicle fatalities involve cyclist DUI. About 60% of cyclist fatalities are not wearing a helmet despite recommendations and applicaible laws. That's why most cycling-vehicle deaths are handled in civil cases - a lower burden of proof and you can still get a payout even if the cyclist had some level of contributory negligence depending on the state.
If a cyclist does not wear a helmet and gets killed by a driver running a red light, it is still 100% the driver's fault.
A kill is still a kill even if the victim didn't wear a bulletproof vest.
Only the collision is 100% the driver's fault (in most states).
The death is up for debate. If you die because you weren't wearing a seatbelt/helmet, you were negligent, so fault is shared.
There is no law mandating everyone wear bulletproof vests. All states have seatbelt laws, and most have helmet laws.
For cyclists?
Cyclists can absolutely be at fault. I don't see why you'd think otherwise. Humans are uniquely fallible, cyclist and drivers are both human (if you ignore Waymo et al).