Update 9:44 pm Pacific Time: Video
Update 9:35 pm Pacific Time: The hospital is reportedly saying that the injuries are non-life threatening.
A man and a woman were struck by a Mercedes Benz on Broadway in Oakland. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, the man driving the Mercedes became frustrated with the marching protesters because he had a green light and his path was blocked. He then slammed the gas peddle and hit the two protesters.
Other protesters at the scene began screaming at the driver and after being questioned by police he was allowed to leave the scene, despite objections from many witnesses who believe he should have been arrested. The two injured protesters were unconscious as they were taken to the hospital. One of them has reportedly died but this has yet to be confirmed.
A general strike was held today in Oakland and thousands flooded the streets, shutting down businesses, ports, schools, and traffic. More details as this story develops.
Edited by Wendy Gittleson
PassionateZephy… NO WHERE in the USA does a driver have the right of way over a pedestrian!
Ok, I have to clarify this. I was there, I watched the entire incident from beginning to end. The driver was not “frustrated” with the protesters. The driver had the right of way, and as a matter of fact, was trying to let the protesters pass. However, there was a bus (51A) behind him slamming the horn. The majority of the protesters heading to the port had already passed that corner at this point, so the driver CAUTIOUSLY decided to go into the intersection, at which point a young man stood in front of the car and said “What, you’re going to run me over?” The driver asked that kid to move and the kid refused, at which point he decided it was smart to bang on the car. The driver then drove forward and tapped the kid. He did not get run over, he did NOT go flying into the air nor was he dragged. It bothers me that people started screaming bloody murder without knowing the whole story. I support the movement 100%, but this was the case of a rowdy kid being rowdy. Two people made stupid decisions and ended up getting hurt.
Even if the two injured were acting stupid it doesn’t give the driver the right to ‘tap’ them with his car. What is ‘tapping’ with a car anyway, especially when it causes injuries? People are help accountable for accidental car related injuries all the time…. and this was intentional. The driver is still at fault.
@PassionateZephy it would seem despite your eye witness report people will think whatever works to match their preconception of belief. Sad that truth can no longer pierce preconceived notions. Thank you for your report it settles me greatly to know the truth of it.
Sadly, everyone will jump to conclusions. Even you.
It is the truth that the person behind the wheel is responsible for the control of the vehicle at all times. Even when the person in front of them is the one behaving reprehensibly. This is the reason why a rear end collision is *always* considered to be the fault of the driver of the rear car. Regardless of what the front car has done. It’s called failure to maintain control of the vehicle so as to prevent a collision.Yeah, I get that the bus was honking. I get that is was a stressful situation. I agree that the kid pounding on the car was WAY out of bounds and should have been self-policed by the other protesters. It is still the responsibility of the driver of the vehicle to maintain control so as to prevent a collision.
I agree that the driver should have been allowed to leave the scene. However, not without any penalty. If this were a work week crowd, rather than protesters, he would have been ticketed for the failure. I see similar situations in downtown Chicago daily. The intersection is filled with people, the light changes, people are *mostly* cleared, and the car behind the car wants to make that turn and starts honking and nudging forward. The front car *still* must wait for it to be safe to continue, even when some idiot pedestrian starts showing off his testosterone levels. Which I also see daily in Chicago.
The driver IS at fault. The protester is also at fault. No one has said where the 2nd protester, the woman came into it.
@lisagems I agree they are both at fault. The protestor for disorderly conduct and maybe property damage, the driver for something far more serious.
@lyta@PassionateZephy Sometimes you can only claim to be an ‘eyewitness’; I’m not saying that Passionate wasn’t there, but anybody can just come forward to say that they witnessed something and get it wrong in one form or another. The Youtube video, posted below, is basically the hardcore, verifiable witness because you can identify the surroundings and the car as being the same as seen from a News Chopper that shot it from above.
I should clarify; the news chopper, if I remember correctly, covered the scene after the fact. @lyta @PassionateZephy
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ypN5EhyBMF0 Looks like a bit more than a “tap” to me.
@CoreyTaylor Far more than a tap! Thanks for posting this. I can’t believe the people who are defending this drivers actions. Since when is deadly assault a justified response to disorderly conduct and property damage? Insanity.
You might be right. The kid may have deserved it. The kid may have been pounding on the hood of his car and there are laws against that in traffic. SO THE GUY IN THE MERCEDES SHOULD HAVE CALLED THE COPS. The kid would have been arrested or the protesters would have been moved out of the way, but now the guy in the Mercedes is now responsible for Aggravated Assault & Battery if the kid decided to press charges.
Just to be clear, I wasn’t victim blaming, nor was I defending the driver; Both acted in a reprehensible manner. I just think that people are going to try to make this way more than what it actually was in order to further their side of the cause, and that in itself is unacceptable to ME. But I suppose that doesn’t matter in the larger scheme of things as I am only one person.
I saw what I saw, and I can concede that not everything is black and white and there is room for error, but this event shouldn’t be made into a bigger deal than what it was.
@PassionateZephy Thank God there are cameras on practically every phone these days, otherwise I wouldn’t be able to accurately state that: That was NOT just a “tap”. The driver looks almost as if he gunned it, carrying the protestor halfway down the freaking street on the hood and slamming him to the pavement. “Tap”…my ass!
@PassionateZephy
If you were truly there, you are either vision impaired or lying. The video clearly shows the driver accelerating rapidly and moving 20-30 feet with the pedestrian in front of him. This was a life threatening situation that you are appearing to try to justify. Please keep your posts truthful or refrain from posting in the future.
I question your eyewitness report entirely.1. According to other video, the car lept forward over 30ft in a matter of a second, dragging the victim the entire time, who was under the car.2. According to this and other video, there was no bus.
PassionateZephy, in NO case does a driver EVER have the right of way over a pedestrian ANYWHERE in America. Please… don’t go making up laws to back up some sort of point you can’t possibly justify anyway.
Are you fucking kidding me? The driver was just sent on his way?! OUTRAGEOUS.
Anyone surprised the protesters were hit by a Mercedes driver?
@SteveReynolds I could care less if it were a ’95 Ford Fiesta; people were injured by a person who obviously suffers from road rage.
@MichaelBock I understand what you are saying. My point, which mebby was poorly made, was that I am not surprised that someone who can afford a Mercedes would be easily provoked by folks he probably assumed to be lazy and beneath him. The whole incident is a metaphor for the low regard most of those folks have for the rest of us.
Oh okay, I figured you meant something along those lines; but that’s a lot to speculate about an unknown person, even if he/she happens to be driving a Benz. He/she could be the very opposite of what you described and perhaps just had a very, very bad day. Your metaphor, though, is about right though. Keep an open mind. :-) @SteveReynolds