Where: St. Petersburg | I 275

Who: Janet and William Riley

A St. Petersburg women was riding on a  motorcycle on I 275 late Thursday night and lost one of the wheels and caused the bike to crash. The couple on the bike were William Riley and Janet Riley of Tierra Verde. Janet Riley was pronounced dead at the scene and William was taken to Bayfront Medical Center for serious head injuries. According to the report, both were wearing helmets and alcohol was not a factor in the crash.

Times reports that being most recent death of Leonardo Llana on March 3, 2009, is the third fatality on to exit ramp according to the Florida Highway Patrol. This young man died when his car lost control and struck the exit’s outside wall. Two years ago, a tanker truck driver died on the same ramp when his truck crashed and exploded. In 2001 a motorcycle rider also died at the scene and when his bike struck the wall.  This exit needs to be carefully evaluated by the Department of Transportation to ensure that there are no design defects causing these tragedies.

Local news media outlets report that a red Dodge Ram pickup truck, apparently trying to avoid being pulled over by the St. Petersburg Police Department, struck and killed a bicyclist and seriously injured a pedestrian at the intersection of 22^nd Avenue South/Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. in the City late last night.

According to sources, the pickup truck was attempting to turn left at 13^th Avenue South, struck the two innocent bystanders, flipped, and landed on another vehicle.  The driver then fled the scene.

The unfortunate bicyclist (not identified) was pronounced dead at the scene, while the pedestrian (likewise not identified) was taken to a local hospital, likely Bayfront Medical Center, with life-threatening injuries. The police investigation continues.

Although it likely would not have made a difference in this case, we like to provide consumers with information they can use to increase their safety.  The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has published articles and videos regarding adult bicycle safety.  Although nothing can protect an innocent bystander from an incident such as this, perhaps the safety tips can help to make others aware and avoid tragedies like this in the future.

The attorneys and staff of the Law Office of James W. Dodson, P.A. send out our prayers and condolences to the families of the bicyclist and pedestrian.  We hope for a speedy and complete recovery for the pedestrian.