Sacramento, CA, October 1 – A bicyclist was killed Thursday morning in a crash involving a bicycle and a vehicle, according to the Sacramento Police Department, which responded to the scene. The department has not yet publicly said what led to the collision, so key questions about how it happened remain open. This report relies on the department’s early information, which may be updated as the investigation continues.
Sacramento bicyclist killed in crash with vehicle at Broadway and Stockton Boulevard
Police were called to the area of Broadway and Stockton Boulevard after 11 a.m. When responding crews arrived, they found the bicyclist suffering from injuries. The bicyclist was pronounced dead at the scene, according to the department. The department has identified him only as a man, and no name has been released.
According to the department, the driver of the vehicle remained at the scene when officers arrived. Roads in the area stayed closed past 2:20 p.m. while the department’s Major Collision Investigation Unit and crime scene investigators processed the collision site. The closure extended well into the afternoon, which meant traffic in the area was disrupted.
Several details remain unconfirmed. Police have not yet released what led to the crash, and the man’s name has not been made public. The department has also not released details about the driver. The investigation remains ongoing, and until the department releases more information, only the details reported so far can be confirmed.
What California law requires of drivers around cyclists
Vehicle Code section 21760, the Three Feet for Safety Act, requires a driver overtaking a bicycle travelling in the same direction to pass at a distance of at least three feet between any part of the vehicle and any part of the bicycle or its rider. Passing closer than that is a violation of the section rather than a matter of judgment.
Section 22517 covers the other common way a cyclist is hurt without being struck from behind. No person may open the door of a vehicle on the side available to moving traffic unless it is reasonably safe to do so, and no door may be left open longer than is necessary to load or unload passengers.
The deadline that applies to a claim like this one
Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1 gives two years for an action for injury to, or for the death of, an individual caused by the wrongful act or neglect of another. The same two years covers an injury claim and a death claim; there is no separate, shorter period because someone died.
Who is entitled to bring a claim when someone is killed
Code of Civil Procedure section 377.60 decides who may bring a wrongful death action. The first group is the surviving spouse, domestic partner, children and the issue of deceased children, or, where there is no surviving issue, whoever would take the estate by intestate succession.
A second group may bring the action only if they were financially dependent on the person who died: a putative spouse and their children, stepchildren, parents, and the legal guardians of the person who died where the parents are deceased. Parents are in that second group, which is the part families are most often surprised by, because dependency has to be shown rather than assumed.
Talking to someone about it
Culver Legal represents people injured in collisions across California. A conversation about what happened costs nothing, and we work on a contingency fee, which means there is no fee unless we win. If we do not win, we do not pass the case costs on to you either.
Nothing on this page is legal advice about any particular case, and the facts of a reported collision often change as the investigation continues.
