Civil Court Finds Abraham Soldaner Responsible for Cyclist Rasha Shamoon's Death
A New York Civil Court has decided today that Abraham Soldaner is responsible for the 2008 death of cyclist Rasha Shamoon.
Shamoon was killed on the corner of Delancey and Bowery on Aug. 5, 2008. More than 20 witnesses called 911 to report the accident, but cops didn't interview anyone, according to Michael Murphy, Transportation Alternatives' spokesman, who just got word of the decision.
"They had over 20 witnesses calling in about the crash and didn't try to interview any of them," Murphy told Runnin' Scared.
At the time of the accident, Soldaner cooperated with the police, who didn't give him a ticket. Because no criminal charges were filed, the family decided to sue Soldaner in civil court, which found him 95 percent negligent -- culpable for her death. (We're still trying to get the details of the negligence settlement -- we'll update when we have them.)
Today's news coincides with increased criticism of the NYPD's handling of bike accidents. In January, cops finally released the file on Mathieu Lefevre, who was fatally struck by a truck in October.
Lefevre's family says that the cops botched the accident's investigation -- and a report proving that evidence was taken with a broken camera certainly doesn't help the NYPD's case.
Follow Victoria Bekiempis @vicbekiempis.
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