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Commuter cyclist killed in Tempe
Posted on October 14th, 2010 19 comments[UPDATE: Oct 14, see Investigation, below]
According to item at biketempe.org, and thread at azfixed.com…
Bike commuter Jay Fretz was killed in a a collision at the intersection of Alamenda and McClintock Drive in Tempe at approximately 6:30p Monday 5/17/2010.
The story has not received any media coverage at the time (strange?). abc15 ran a piece 10 days after the crash that said “Investigators said he was hit by a car as he rode through a crosswalk at McClintock and Alameda drives”.
This tragedy comes just one week after an ASU student was killed in another Tempe collision.
2010 Arizona cyclist fatality grid
The folks from T.B.A.G. have erected a ghost bike to commemorate the spot where Jay was killed.
“But there is more to the story, punctuated with lousy timing and heart-wrenching misfortune…” read more.
The investigation
On Oct 14, 2010 the Arizona Republic is reporting the outcome of Tempe Police investigation. The short answer is that because there were some conflict in witness statements regarding the color of the signal, police didn’t want to go forward on the red-light running charge, which would have precipitated a 28-672 misdemeanor criminal charge. Presumably she agreed to plea responsible to speeding in exchange for not perusing those charges.
I would like to read the DR because it seems odd that there were only 3 independent witnesses at that busy intersection at rush hour.
This is a bit slow (almost 5 months?!) for this sort of investigation.
….
Not One More Foundation Announces to all Arizona Cycling Teams, Clubs, Community and Friends a special Fundraising Ride to “Link the Lake” for Jay Fretz. Sat Dec 4th… see more on the arizona brumby’s site.
19 responses to “Commuter cyclist killed in Tempe”
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A ghost bike will be installed at the intersection on Saturday, May 29. Time TBA.
The ghost bike will be constructed during Bike Art nights at the Bike Saviours bicycle co-op, located at University and Roosevelt. Bike Art nights are Thursdays from 6-9 pm.
Thank you for helping to spread the word. We learned there was brief mention on KJZZ, but haven’t found any other media coverage of this second tragedy.
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Kevin Fretz May 20th, 2010 at 11:27
This is Jay’s brother. I am glad to see someone is reporting on my brother’s death, and want to thank you on behalf of his family. I would like to participate in the ghost bike construction, as well as possibly use it at his memorial service the following day. Please let me know the best way to contact you.
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Jim Miner May 21st, 2010 at 09:42
I have spent most of my life on a bicycle. I do not have DUI’s, I just found out early that I could live without a car and for many years I did so. I now ride a motorcycle.
I have ridden the STP plus STP double four times. I have ridden six or more rides of over 800 miles. I have ridden across the USA twice, once unsupported and alone.
Some people simply do not respect the safety of the bicyclist. Short of carrying guns (not my recommendation), I do not know how to change this. I have had people slow down and follow me for five seconds to allow me to pass a narrow area but these are exceptional drivers who drive well ahead of themselves.
In the current society of Cell Phones, Text, and loud music, there is little room for the alert, thoughtful drivers that we all should be. We can all choose to be better drivers. We just cannot choose for others to do the same.
Our Cities and States need to be held accountable. Wrongful death instances should result in Law Suites.
I am an Engineer, not a Lawyer.
Jim Miner
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KiminAZ May 25th, 2010 at 09:26
Hi, Kevin. I was just reading about your brother online.
http://www.slayenergyvampires.com/about-me/
What a great guy! I am so sorry for your loss, and I know your pain. My 40 year old husband and father of our 2 kids was hit and killed while cycling by a driver who had taken sleeping pills. I am gonna try and come to the ghost bike installation on the 29th.
Thinking of you and wishing you peace…
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Kevin Fretz May 25th, 2010 at 21:31
Thanks Kim, I really appreciate the note and would welcome your support at the installation. I am sorry to hear of your similar tragedy; I am finding it happens all too frequently and often without the recognition it deserves. Kevin
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Kevin Fretz May 29th, 2010 at 13:55
The installation was just completed, and hopefully will be a stark reminder for the thousands of drivers and riders who will pass it every day. Heartfelt thanks to Rebecca and the wonderful group from Bike Saviours who helped organize the construction and installation. Jay’s death did finally receive some press on ABC15 and AZCentral, and we’ll continue to spread the message. Kevin
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KiminAZ May 29th, 2010 at 17:14
So sorry I missed it. I was looking for the time to be posted. Did I miss that? Thinking of Jay and all his friends and family…
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Wendy May 29th, 2010 at 20:30
Hi Kevin, I’m so sorry to hear about your loss. I live in the neighborhood where the accident happened. We drove by just after the accident, as they were working on your brother. Since there was no news coverage, I never knew what had happened, who was he, was he ok, did he have family? And on and on. When I saw the ghostbike memorial this afternoon my heart sank. Although the memorial confirmed what I had feared the outcome would be, I have to say it is a very cool memorial. Again, I’m sorry for your loss and I will continue to pray for you and your family.
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Bridgett May 31st, 2010 at 11:29
Hi Kevin,
My older brother’s name is Kevin as well
Well, there was some hesitation to post this but it is only right. I was there the day of the accident and witnessed everything. It was the most devastating thing I have seen and I quickly called for help. While I won’t go into detail out of respect for you and your family, I can say that in all honesty this accident should have never happened. It was completely preventable and the City as well as others need to raise awareness. After the accident I was frantic in looking for any information regarding the accident and if the bicyclist which I now know is Jay was ok. I got a call from a detective last week and while he didn’t give me a direct answer, I knew Jay was not alright. I drove past the site of the accident last night because I live so close by and I saw the ghost bike. I am truly sorry for you and your family’s lost. There are no words that can do any justice. I am more than willing to do my part and work with Tempe Police Dept. If you would like more information I would be happy to email you. You and your family are in my prayers. -
Randy May 31st, 2010 at 14:16
I am so sorry this happened; and my heart goes out to the entire Fretz family and friends in this time of mourning and loss. I am a bike commuter also, and this hit me hard. I live about a mile east of the accident site. I used to take Alameda to work all the time. people drive way too fast along that stretch of McClintock. if it is any consolation, I found a link to Jay’s energy saving site and am using his recommendations in making my home more energy-efficient. that way some of his good work will do some more good, for the planet and our family, anyhow.
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Angie Fretz June 1st, 2010 at 12:13
This is Jay’s wife. I have been avoiding the blogs, etc. because it has been so devastating. Bridgett, if you would be willing to give me some contact information for you as I have also met another witness who was on a bicycle right in front of my husband, I would be so grateful. I thank all those who do and do not know us and our family for your outpouring of support. Jay was a wonderful husband and dad to our 5 year old daughter and will be greatly missed. Angie Fretz
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Bridgett June 1st, 2010 at 21:59
Hi Angie,
I have no issue providing contact information to you. You can reach me at pricebridgett@gmail.com or bridgett.price@asu.edu. I am willing to provide you and your family any helpful information. I look forward to hearing from you. Again you are all in my prayers.
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Scott June 2nd, 2010 at 11:22
I’m an avid biker, and ride through that same intersection several times a week. The evening that Jay was hit, my wife and I were driving our car by there and saw his bike in the street.
For a week after the accident, I tried in vain to learn anything about the accident, but could find no information. Nothing on the City of Tempe web site, Arizona Republic, or the East Valley Tribune. Too bad.
The Ghost Bike memorial on the northeast corner of Alameda and McClintock will be a sober reminder to the unfortunate risks we face as bikers.
My condolences to Jay’s family. I’m sure we passed each other on our bikes…I would have liked to have met him.
Blessings
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hi folks. First off, my deepest condolences to Angie and the rest of the Fretz family. I was cycling just an hour or so ago up that stretch of road and seeing the white ghostbike and felt compelled to see what it was. even though i live on the SW corner of southern/mcclintock, i never heard of the accident and the story of Jay. Admittedly, straddling my bike and seeing the memorial sent a chill up my spine. I feel a bond and connection for *anyone* who takes to these streets on 2 pedaled wheels. It especially hits hard when it’s a 20 ft stretch of pavement that i myself have ridden past hundreds of times.
I don’t hate all the actions of drivers and i don’t love all the actions of cyclists, but the bottom line is we on bikes are mostly at the mercy of things out of our control. My head is on a swivel as soon as i pass the bus stop, past basha’s, past the high school, past the partment complex, all the way to broadway. That particular corner is very suspect to drivers getting the nose of their cars in the crosswalks simply because they can’t see through those block fences around the houses along the street.
I don’t know any of the investigation details myself, but
for the sake of the Fretz’ and the cyclist that will continue on these very same roads, that justice, peace and closure will go where it belongs.Jay and family have a message and a cause that could benefit us all. I checked his blog at slayenergyvampires.com. I hope that it will get picked up and carried on as well.
Stay safe, stay alive brothers and sisters on the road.
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First and foremost, I am so sorry about Jay’s death. My deepest sympathies to the family.
I also live a mile east of the intersection and have used the Alameda bicycle path for many years particularly when I was riding to and from work, and for trips to ASU. What happened to the driver? Were there any citations? The Tempe news media need to provide information. Most of the accidents that I have seen between vehicle and cyclists are the fault of the drivers. It’s an outrage to see that the drivers are rarely prosecuted.
Carolyhn
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Kevin Fretz June 7th, 2010 at 21:08
All – thanks for the continued postings and interest. Russ, thanks…a great note and very well said. Carolyn, the Tempe PD investigation is just now complete and we will pursue all options afforded us under the law. ABC 15 carried a brief piece on Jay’s accident @ http://www.abc15.com/dpp/news/region_southeast_valley/tempe/biker-wanted-to-make-a-greener-world-for-daughter; and AZCentral weaved his story onto Chris Volpe’s accident reported a week prior @ http://www.azcentral.com/community/tempe/articles/2010/05/27/20100527tempe-biker-memorial-asu.html. If you are also engaged in such a noble cause and bike commuting out there every day in pursuit of a sustainable society…do as Russ said and keep your head on a swivel. Trust no one else on the road; I have preached this to my wife for years even before this happened.
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azbikelaw May 28th, 2012 at 14:38
Fretz fatality is ADOT incident number 2372765
Synopsis:
Fatal collision at a signalled intersection. Both units were “going straight ahead”, the driver heading north and the cyclist heading east, and the
CollisionManner FRONT_TO_SIDE indicates perpendicular-path collision. Driver has damage to the FRONT_MIDDLE. Supposedly the cyclist tested positive for marijuana, *however*, I have seen the drug test data applied to the wrong person before, and I suspect that’s
what’s happened here.
[TODO: double-check FARS database for drug test results]mysql> select * from pretty_incident WHERE IncidentID=2372765\G *************************** 1. row *************************** IncidentID: 2372765 Microfilm: 19650245 ADOTReceivedDate: 2010-07-27 00:00:00 Status: 200 DataConv2008Flag: -1 IncidentDate: 2010-05-17 00:00:00 IncidentDateTime: 2010-05-17 17:25:00 IncidentYear: 2010 IncidentMonth: 5 IncidentDayOfWeek: 2 IncidentHour: 17 OfficerNcic: 729 OfficerId: 20048 FileNumber: 10078719 ExtendedNcic: 729 DamageOverLimitFlag: 1 PhotosTakenFlag: 1 PhotographerName: J CYNOWA PhotographerID: 15781 PhotographerAgency: TEMPE PD InvestigatedAtScene: 1 DateTimeInvestigated: 2010-05-17 17:00:00 CollisionManner: ANGLE_FRONT_TO_SIDE LightCondition: DAYLIGHT FirstHarmfulEvent: PEDALCYCLE FirstHarmfulLocation: ON_ROADWAY TotalUnits: 2 TotalMotorists: 1 TotalNonMotorists: 1 TotalInjuries: 0 TotalFatalities: 1 TotalMotoristInjuries: 0 TotalNonMotoristInjuries: 0 TotalMotoristFatalities: 0 TotalNonMotoristFatalities: 1 InjurySeverity: 5 MedicalTransportFlag: 1 FatalAccidentFlag: 1 TowAwayFlag: 1 NscReportable: FATALS_INJURIES_OR_PROPERTY_DAMAGE_OVER_1000 SchoolBusRelatedFlag: 0 WorkZoneRelatedFlag: 0 WorkersPresentFlag: -1 AlcoholInvolvementFlag: Not Available DrugInvolvementFlag: Not Available HazardousFlag: 0 HitAndRunFlag: 0 OnRoad: McClintock Dr CrossingFeature: Alameda Dr Offset: 0 OffsetMeasuredFlag: 0 OffsetUnit: 1 MPNum: 0 MPOffset: 0 CityId: 295 CountyId: 13 StateId: 3 StateCode: AZ CountryCode: US Latitude: 33.4001441634525 Longitude: -111.909132082341 ValidLocationFlag: 1 LocationToolVersion: HESIntersectionFlag: 1 IntersectionFlag: 1 IntersectionRouteID: 12387 IntersectionATISCode: 07 ALAMEDA DR TrafficWayType: TWO_WAY_NOT_DIVIDED_WITH_CONTINUOUS_LEFT_TURN_LAN IntersectionType: FOUR_WAY_INTERSECTION JunctionRelation: INTERSECTION_NON_INTERCHANGE Weather: CLEAR PropertyDamageOwnerCode: NOT_APPLICABLE_MINUS_1 PropertyDamageDescCode: -1 mysql> select * from pretty_unit WHERE IncidentID=2372765\G *************************** 1. row *************************** IncidentID: 2372765 UnitID: 2942730 UnitNumber: 2 UnitType: PEDALCYCLIST TravelDirection: EAST RoadAlignment: STRAIGHT RoadGrade: LEVEL Lane: LANE_1 UnitAction: GOING_STRAIGHT_AHEAD MostHarmfulEvent: MOTOR_VEHICLE_IN_TRANSPORT HitAndRunFlag: 0 RoadCondition1: NO_CONTRIBUTING_CIRCUMSTANCES RoadCondition2: NO_CONTRIBUTING_CIRCUMSTANCES EnvConditionDesc1: NO_CONTRIBUTING_CIRCUMSTANCES EnvConditionDesc2: VehicleStateCode: -- RegYear: 1900 BodyStyleDesc: No Data MakeDesc: No Data ColorDesc: No Data BusFlag: -1 GVWRFlag: -1 HazmatFlag: -1 PostedSpeed: 0 EstimatedSpeed: 0 DisabledFlag: -1 DamageArea: UNDEFINED_MINUS_1 DefectDesc1: No Data DefectDesc2: EventSequence1: MOTOR_VEHICLE_IN_TRANSPORT EventSequence2: BLANK_0 EventSequence3: BLANK_0 EventSequence4: BLANK_0 ControlType: TRAFFIC_CONTROL_SIGNAL SurfaceCondition1: DRY SurfaceCondition2: BLANK_0 *************************** 2. row *************************** IncidentID: 2372765 UnitID: 3126722 UnitNumber: 1 UnitType: DRIVER TravelDirection: NORTH RoadAlignment: STRAIGHT RoadGrade: LEVEL Lane: LANE_1 UnitAction: GOING_STRAIGHT_AHEAD MostHarmfulEvent: PEDALCYCLE HitAndRunFlag: 0 RoadCondition1: NO_CONTRIBUTING_CIRCUMSTANCES RoadCondition2: NO_CONTRIBUTING_CIRCUMSTANCES EnvConditionDesc1: NO_CONTRIBUTING_CIRCUMSTANCES EnvConditionDesc2: VehicleStateCode: AZ RegYear: 1999 BodyStyleDesc: PASSENGER_4DSD_SEDAN_4_DR MakeDesc: TOYT_TOYOTA ColorDesc: GLD_GOLD BusFlag: 0 GVWRFlag: 0 HazmatFlag: 0 PostedSpeed: 35 EstimatedSpeed: 32 DisabledFlag: 0 DamageArea: FRONT_MIDDLE DefectDesc1: NO_CONTRIBUTING_CIRCUMSTANCES DefectDesc2: EventSequence1: PEDALCYCLE EventSequence2: BLANK_0 EventSequence3: BLANK_0 EventSequence4: BLANK_0 ControlType: TRAFFIC_CONTROL_SIGNAL SurfaceCondition1: DRY SurfaceCondition2: BLANK_0 mysql> select * from pretty_person WHERE IncidentID=2372765\G *************************** 1. row *************************** IncidentID: 2372765 UnitID: 3126722 UnitNumber: 1 PersonID: 6577657 PersonNumber: 1 PersonType: DRIVER ZipCode: 850446194 Age: 20 Sex: F SeatPosition: 11 SafetyDevice: SHOULDER_AND_LAP_BELT Airbag: NOT_DEPLOYED InjuryStatus: NO_INJURY Ejection: NOT_EJECTED Extraction: NOT_APPLICABLE_0 NonMotoristLocation: NON_APPLICABLE_0 AlcoholUseFlag: -1 BACResult: -1 TestTypeA: MINUS_1 DrugUseFlag: -1 DrugType: NO_DRUGS_REPORTED_NEGATIVE_MINUS_1 TestTypeD: -1 TransportSource: MINUS_1 TransportedTo: No Data InjuryArea: -1 InjuryDesc: -1 Violation1: UNKNOWN_99 Violation2: NOT_APPLICABLE_0 *************************** 2. row *************************** IncidentID: 2372765 UnitID: 2942730 UnitNumber: 2 PersonID: 6578318 PersonNumber: 1 PersonType: PEDALCYCLIST ZipCode: 852827353 Age: 36 Sex: M SeatPosition: 11 SafetyDevice: NONE_USED Airbag: NOT_APPLICABLE_0 InjuryStatus: FATAL Ejection: NOT_APPLICABLE_0 Extraction: NOT_APPLICABLE_0 NonMotoristLocation: NON_APPLICABLE_0 AlcoholUseFlag: 1 BACResult: 0 TestTypeA: BLOOD_TEST DrugUseFlag: 1 DrugType: MARIJUANA TestTypeD: 101 TransportSource: EMS TransportedTo: MED0235 InjuryArea: 99 InjuryDesc: 99 Violation1: UNKNOWN_99 Violation2: NOT_APPLICABLE_0
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Rebecca May 20th, 2010 at 09:34