http://www.cnn.com/2013/10/03/us/bikers-attack-video/index.html?c=us
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I think it's painfully obvious that the motorcycle DELIBERATELY slowed down so he would be bumped by he SUV. The motorcycle gang were for sure the antagonists. However, for the life of me I can't figure out why the SUV driver (or his wife because NY is a no-phone-while-driving state) wasn't on the phone with 911 the whole time?! He should not have driven away from the hit and run but I can totally understand his fearing for his family... Had he had been talking to emergency/the police I feel like this wouldn't have turned into such a terrible situation. I feel bad for the guy who was injured
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This is the first story I've read about this and it seems like there could still be a lot more info that comes out that could swing the balance in favor of one or the other.
Based just on what I read there though... I think a lot of the bikers should definitely be charged and I think the driver of the SUV should possibly be charged but with a somewhat low level offense. It sounds like they were harassing the SUV (slowing down in front of him to mess with him) and he probably accidentally hit the first guy who was not hurt. Then they start slashing his tires?? With his kid in the car, I can totally see why he peeled out like that. I'm not sure it was the BEST idea. If he had a cell phone stopping and calling 911 was probably the better bet. Although it sounds like MAYBE they were also trying to get in the car. If that's the case then I'm not sure he had a choice but to get out? I don't know if he had to hit 3 people but if they were in front of his car, maybe? The whole thing seems like a sad mess.
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@thismustbetheplace: That's what I keep saying! WHY didn't they call 911?!
The biker obviously brake checked him and got hit, so the SUV slowed down and if someone slashed my tires you better believe I would peel out of there too! The whole thing is a mess, but I am glad to see the bikers being punished over the SUV driver.
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@thismustbetheplace: @MrsTiz: I really hope the SUV called 911 and they would release the tapes already.
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So I guess I don't understand what happened initially. In the very beginning of the video, I see the SUV go through the bikers. And that started the reaction, but what happened there? Was he impatient? Were the bikers harassing him first?
The bikers could have called it in as a hit and run. If you're following the guy, you can mentally take down his license plate. But then mob mentality kicked in.
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@blackbird: I *think* what initially happenednwas the SUV was driving in the middle of the motorcycles. One of them slowed down for no real apparent reason catching the SUV off gaurd. The SUV bumped the motorcyclist, but didn't cause damage. Well the bump triggered the intial reaction for the biker to slash the SUvs tires. The SUV plowed through the motorcyclists and seriously injured one person.
When I see a group of bikers I try to drive behind all of them ebcause they are clearly a group. I don't understand why the SUV was in the middle of all the bikers to begin with.
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The story that I first read said that the SUV driver had called 911 to report "erratic bikers" before everything else even happened.
This was the story:
http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/09/30/20759574-caught-on-video-father-with-family-in-suv-chased-beaten-by-speed-demon-bikers?liteETA: My two cents after @Mrs. Lemon-Lime: comment... I understand not getting your car in the middle of a group of motorcycles. The bikers were apparently in town for a rally that they didn't have a permit for. It's hard to cut off bikers so I'm inclined to believe that there was a break in the group, at which time the SUV drove in. Or the bikers merged around him, not sure.
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I have been following this story,. the biker that got hit deliberately slowed down and when the driver ran him over, the driver kept going and then they attacked him and beat him. The driver wasnt charged with anything because he didn't do anything wrong. Yes he should have stopped but they were antagonizing him
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@blackbird: I heard somewhere on the radio (I don't have a source so I don't know how true it is) but they were saying that the bikers and the SUV had some sort of altercation before the video started. I don't know what, but that's why all of the bikers were surrounding the SUV?
Again, no proof to that just speculation I think
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So I heard about this story on the radio and this is what I heard happened:
The motorcyclist came up and swarmed around the SUV, surrounding it on all sides (or most sides, I don't really know). Then the motorcyclist in front slowed down, purposely causing the SUV to hit them. Then the motorcyclists attacked the SUV, slashing it's tires and what-not and the SUV driver peeled out of there, in the process running over some of the motorcyclists. The rest of the motorcyclists then chased the SUV down and beat the driver.
The whole thing sounds so scary! I'm sure that if I was in this situation, I probably wouldn't be thinking very clearly and would be scared for my life and the life of my family, so calling 911 probably wouldn't be on my mind until I got OUT of the situation. I think I would have reacted in a similar manner to the SUV driver, assuming that what I've heard about how the motorcyclists instigated the attack happened that way.
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I don't know whose fault it is, because I'm not clear on why that first motorcyclist slowed down, but my heart breaks as a parent. I can't imagine going through that with my baby in the back. They must have been terrified.
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@sotofamilia: this. I can't even imagine what the parents must have been feeling.
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@blackbird: I think the story changes depending on which media outlet is covering it. I actually can't watch this particular video because i'm at work but I've seen a couple different versions. My understanding is that the SUV was driving fast (?per one of biker's moms who was interviewed later on, so who knows) and so the bikers got pissed off and tried to 'send him a message' aka brake-check him. Then things escalated from there. I think mob-mentality had a lot to do with the biker's behavior.
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Oh okay, thanks guys. I read about the guy bumping someone, but i thought that was the mid part of the video where the biker slowed down and bumped the driver.
It's starting to sound like the bikers were instigating shit to begin with. Either to be funny or because they were just being dicks. Hard to say.
No matter what, it's never ok to pull the driver out and beat the crap out of him. You call 911 for a hit and run. So...yeah.
I'd like to think a guy with his toddler and wife in the car wouldn't taunt the bikers to begin with, but maybe he was, you never know. Hopefully some more proof or phone calls makes it way out.
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@Mrs. Lemon-Lime: It seems entirely likely that they drove up around him and surrounded him. Maybe they were just messing around having some fun harassing the guy in the land rover and the driver got a bit more scared than they intended? Then he bumped one of them, then they got pissed, then he got more scared and drove off over 3 of them, then they got MORE pissed...
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The chain of events as I've heard it is, motorcycles are driving like crazy, motorcycle slows down, gets bumped by SUV. SUV stops to try and do the right thing, they turn into unruly mob and start smashing in windows/slashing tires, SUV takes off (hitting the one biker) and they chase him down but because of slashed tires he has to stop... they pull him out of the car and beat him. They also opened the side door where his wife was. The video also shows them trying to smash the back window where his baby was seated.
I can only imagine that if my car was surrounded by people trying to smash in my windows, especially with a baby in the backseat - I would do whatever is necessary to get myself and my family out of that situation. Imagine how terrifying that had to have been.
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@mae, definitely.
you know this reminds me of an episode of CSI....i vaguely remember it, though.
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i think something must have happened to piss off the motorcyclists that we don't know about. it could have been something as minor as the driver blowing his horn at them to get out of the way. but i can't imagine they just decided to pick on this one driver for no reason.
with that said, how they reacted is inexcusable and i think the driver was well within is right to do what he did. he had kids in his car and feared for his and their lives. i can't say that i would have done anything differently. (not including whatever happened in the beginning that we didn't see...)
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The other thought I've had, as I follow this story, is why didn't the SUV try and lose the bikers? Maybe it's easier said than done. But in the video you can see other exits off the highway, so why didn't the SUV take one of those?
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I don't know NYC streets well, but it looks like he did get off the highway and got stuck in traffic/tires were slashed and that is when they pulled him out and beat him... @lindsayinny I'm sure you know the roads better, is that right?
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@psw27: Now that you mention it, towards the end of the video, the vehicles are all on non-highway roads so the SUV turned off at some point. I just remember seeing another exit in the video and wondering why the SUV didn't take it. Depending on where the were on the highway/parkway, some of the exits are about 5 miles apart so by the time things got worse, the SUV might've taken the first exit possible.
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@LindsayInNY: I watched a lot of the video and it looked like he sped away and was driving at a pretty fast speed. He motorcyclists were right on his tail. Any exit he could have taken, I'm certain they would have followed until he was forced to stop. Maybe he thought driving into the city, where it would be crowded and have lots of witnesses and maybe a police sttion nearby was the best idea. I would be terrified if I were the driver. Surrounded by a gang of motorcyclists who were trying to eat into the car. I do believe, though, that there was something else that led up to the brake checking. Maybe some gesturing back and forth while driving and then the cyclist just escalated the whole situation by brake checking him.
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The idea of this happening with my boys in the back is horrifying. The story I read said the SUV driver was on the pone with 911, but who know?
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I just read this article about an undercover NY detective taking part in the attack ... I am speechless.
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@sunshineandsushi: its so odd that he lied about it but if he didn't do anything, he also would have blown his cover - which it seemed like there was something pretty big going on? I'm not sure.
The SUV driver didn't do anything wrong in my opinion. Such a scary story though.
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There were a couple incidents of biker gangs randomly surrounding and harassing cars on the highways in St Louis several years ago. I dont think its necessarily true that the SUV driver had to have done something first.
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@HLK208: but I think the article says that the video evidence shows that he was contributing to the gang up, or whatever you want to call it. The detective said he didn't do anything but i think the video showed otherwise. That's what I read, anyway. I agree, I don't blame the SUV driver.
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This story makes me so sick. I can't imagine how scary it would have been for the Lien family. I read that the wife called 911 four times within 8 minutes. Where were the police?!?
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This story really freaks me out. I have seen biker gangs harassing people in NYC with impunity before, so I also don't believe that the SUV driver necessarily did anything to provoke them.
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@sunshineandsushi: I heard earlier on the news there's surveillance footage of the cop banging on the SUV window.
At first I was conflicted about how much force was really necessary for the SUV to get out of harms way. But, then there has been so much video of bikers surrounding vehicles, driving the wrong way and just in general being a nuisance.
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