Motorcyclist accused of hitting pedestrian during San Luis Obispo protest facing misdemeanor charges
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. - A motorcyclist who rode through a Black Lives Matter protest and struck a pedestrian in San Luis Obispo is facing possible misdemeanor charges.
The San Luis Obispo Police Department says it has reviewed all available evidence and is recommending to the district attorney's office that the motorcyclist, identified as a 59-year-old San Luis Obispo man, be charged with reckless driving. The police department also recommends he be cited.
The man drove through a crowd of protesters standing in a crosswalk during a protest on Sept. 2.
One of the protesters was hit in the left leg but did not suffer any serious injuries.
Police said the motorcyclist rode to the police department to file a report saying that the pedestrians tried to knock his motorcycle down. The investigation found no evidence that was the case, the police department said.
“The pedestrians present and involved provided different descriptions of the situation than the motorcyclist reported to SLOPD. To resolve the conflicting versions, we asked the public to come forward with other video or photos of the encounter and are thankful for the few that did. We carefully reviewed various videos and photos provided to SLOPD frame by frame to get the most complete perspective possible and determine who was at fault. In addition, our investigation involved interviews with several eyewitnesses and, the victim, checking with surrounding businesses for surveillance footage that would have captured the incident, and a careful review of all videos and photographs provided to the San Luis Obispo Police Department.”
SLOPD Capt. Jeff Smith
The police department is also recommending citations be issued to two pedestrians who were in the crosswalk "obstructing vehicle travel lanes" at a nearby street corner.
