on SW Canyon Road last week.
(Photo: Beaverton PD)
Howard Hagge, the man who drove his Dodge Caliber into Yulia Shtutman while she rode her bike on SW Canyon Road last week, has been issued a citation for making a dangerous left turn.
According to the Beaverton Police Department, their Crash Analysis Reconstruction Team determined that Hagge made his left turn on a blinking arrow and Shtutman had a green light. Bail for Hagge was set at $472 — $90 more than the standard $382 for that violation because it resulted in a collision and is therefore considered “aggravated”.
The crash caused serious injuries to Shtutman and she spent six days in a hospital. She was released yesterday and is now home with family. I have been in touch with her father Michael Shtutman via email. He shared more information about her injuries:
“Yulia is recovering from Post concussive syndrome and multiple nasal and face bones fractures. It may take 4-8 weeks to recover from PCS and some follow up procedures may required for other damages. According to the doctors, helmet made a real difference and safe Yulia from significantly more serious brain traumas.”
It’s worth noting that the Beaverton PD’s initial statement about the crash stated that Ms. Shtutman was traveling westbound and then, “impacted the passenger side of the car, as it turned.” That language led to local media coverage like this from KGW (emphasis mine):
“Witnesses told police the driver had been turning left onto SW 110th Avenue from SW Canyon Road when the cyclist ran into the passenger side of the car.”
And that type of coverage led to comments like, “This is what happens when a bike rider runs a stop sign.”
With a week since the collision occurred, and the fact that Shtutman is out of the hospital, I don’t expect any follow-ups to this story in the local media.
I hope Beaverton PD takes this as an example to be more sensitive in statements about collisions to not insinuate that one person “impacted” or “collided with” the other. Whether they intend to or not, those type of statements make a subtle judgment about who is at fault. I’d recommend to simply state that two vehicle operators were involved in a collision. That way, nothing about who collided into who is released until a thorough investigation has been concluded.
UPDATE:
Michael Shtutman, Yulia’s father, has shared more about her injuries with me via email:
“Yulia is recovering from Post concussive syndrome and multiple nasal and face bones fractures. It may take 4-8 weeks to recover from PCS and some follow up procedures may required for other damages. According to the doctors, helmet made a real difference and safe Yulia from significantly more serious brain traumas.”
He also shared these thoughts about biking conditions in Beaverton:
“Based on my experience of biking in Europe I think that painting of two lines with bike in between on the roads is not enough to create real bike roads and make city safe for the bikers.”