Man gets prison for STP hit-and-run
Posted by Jonathan Maus (Publisher/Editor) on November 24th, 2008 at 1:09 pm
Northeast Portland resident Daniel Whittlinger, who was arrested back in July 2007 after striking three riders in the Seattle-to-Portland ride has been sentenced to 6.5 years in prison.
The Oregonian's Stuart Tomlinson has the story:
Daniel B. Whittlinger, 41, was convicted of two counts of second-degree assault, one count of third-degree assault, failure to perform the duties of a driver and driving under the influence of intoxicants
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Seems like DUI is the commonality in a lot of these incidents. Same with the Hood to Coast runner.
RecommendedHe wasn't convicted of the felony hit and run? Since the police chased him 8 miles, I would've thought that charge would be a no-brainer. In any case, while 6.5 years seems a bit light in this case, he'll at least be off the road and not endangering anyone for a while.
RecommendedMatt, the charge described above as "failure to perform the duties of a driver" is the phrasing used in the Oregon statute to describe what is colloquially called "hit and run."
I'm a little surprised this wasn't on the front page.
This guy was a convicted murderer even before this cowardly, psychotic act. Should be 60.5 years ... we are not safe with him free, simple as that.
RecommendedYou're right about the DUI component being the commonality in these cases.
Increasingly it seems as if the problem lies in the exact nature of the commonality.
The only people being jailed are those who've been convicted of DUI. If you break the law and kill a cyclist, and are sober, it ends up being a no fault, no arrest situation!
It really seems as if the only time drivers are punished for negligence, is when they are convicted of being under the influence. The plight of the vulnerable road user seems entirely secondary to a dui conviction.
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