Cameron Bean (ZAP) killed by car on a run

possibly so, possibly not. fact is, the cops have full authority to cite her for releveant infractions (such as driving too fast for conditions, reckless driving, etc), it's just that they always choose to let drivers off when they hit cyclists, runners, walkers, etc, as they "never even saw them" (speaking of the person they hit/killed). Police have great latitude with what vehicle code infractions to cite drivers for, they just choose not to apply ones that could stick very easily. DA's go along with this and the friggin EXTREMELY negligent drivers never get charged.

I was struck on my bike several years ago, lady was all the way off the road (on the shoulder), the state police stated in the police report that she "was in violation of vehicle code "abc.123.xxx" but never actually wrote her a ticket for what they said in their report that she violated. WTF???

gonna miss Cam, he was a good dude, a real good dude.

I had the pleasure of running and enjoying beers with Cameron. Really great guy, this is truly tragic.

very sorry to hear it. thoughts and prayers.two additional thoughts:(1)

not my real name. wrote:

possibly so, possibly not. fact is, the cops have full authority to cite her for releveant infractions...

this is basically true, but also largely irrelevant. prosecutors can bring charges on all crimes for which the police arrest a suspect, can bring charges that are more or less severe than the charges leveled by the police, and can decide not to file any charges at all. prosecutors can also influence arrest behavior. very little of what happens here will be driven by the initial police decision.

(2) what's with all the arrest and draconian punishment commentary? and what's with the linking the calls for draconian punishment to the various bad behaviors, as if there's some basis for saying that's how we end those behaviors?

if the intuition is: "well, the driver deserves something bad, given what she did"--that's a very human response, totally understandable, and probably even a worthy sentiment. but im not sure how we all jump from there to imprisonment and monetary compensation. does the surviving family even gain in that scenario? is that better than public shaming? or how about harvesting her organs for needy folks who've shown more promise in life? what if we forced her back to work and garnished her wages and put em into a fund promoting the end of bad driving habits? options are endless for doing something with this lady such that shes more useful for everyone than if shes in prison and subject to some fine she cant pay.

This is a terrible event for everyone close to it and I give my condolences to Cameron's family and friends. This situation is no good yet happens too often. There is something wrong in our culture's understanding of vehicles as they relate to and interact with the outside world. I suggest everyone who has not heard this yet listen to Freakanomics podcast "The perfect crime":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uOiKyTh5n9U

The episode does a great job of exposing the lack of repercussions associated with hitting and killing a pedestrian while on driving a vehicle. The biggest problem is the perception of all vehicle vs pedestrian collisions as accidents. The driver rarely if ever has malicious intent, yet they still hit and kill a person. If it is an accident, then by definition, that situation could just as likely happen to one driver then it could to another. Although the collision is often the result of driver neglect, the punishment for killing a person most often results only in a fine or suspended license. No one wants to create a world where you can get jail time for a situation that is perceived as inevitable / pure (un)luck. the problem with that line of thinking though is that it creates zero incentive for drivers to pay more attention to the road or drive in a cautious aware manner. I will admit, even as a runner and cyclist, when I drive, it is often a little over the speed limit and when my phone buzzes I am tempted to look at it. Driving for all of us has become a passive meaningless activity. We all forget just how much responsibility we hold when we are driving a two ton box of steel. Phrases like "slow down and save a life" go in one ear and out the other. I advocate for more cautious and aware driving by everyone, and punishments severe enough to keep good driving habits at the front of all drivers minds.

This is an extremely popular road for runners and cyclists. It is completely flat with few turns. You can see a mile ahead of you. There is very little traffic. This was completely avoidable. The driver hit and ran. Claims she thought she hit a deer. Thats why she didnt stop. I would wager strongly she was on her phone.

This was completely avoldable.

I Also think she was on the phone. you don't veer way to the left on a straight road because of the sun. that said though...reminder to all my runner comrades that running on running on the road is dangerous and never let your guard doen.Be aware of your surroundings...noises..smells..traffic. It only takes on hit by a hunk of metal kill you.

Condolences to his family.

Be careful out there.

There is an inclination in such situations to tell fellow runners to be careful out there. then we read the details and learn being careful had nothing to do with it: he was facing traffic, wearing reflectivee clothes, on the road shoulder; and he still lost his life. To most of us, this is just the latest in a long line of such stories, and we forget about it in a day or two. To his family and those who loved him, the loss never goes away. All I can say is I'm sorry for the tragic loss.

tired of it wrote:

Amen brother. I agree 100% this sh!t has got to stop. Too many people get off without paying the price for their negligence. Whether serving jail time or making payments to the family of the deceased.

I'm not sure what the answers are for this type of thing that is soooo prevalent in our society but people ned to be held accountable. Drunk driving, texting, on the phone, whatever, too many drivers on the road are distracted or are just plain dangerous behind the wheel.

There is your answer^.

Which is why this lowlife left the scene of the fatal collision: she knew she had been neglectful and caused an major injury.

She was distracted enough to drive (1) to the left out of her lane, (2) into and across the oncoming lane and (3) to the left out of THAT lane. Setting sun? Please? If the sun was this "blinding" on that stretch that nobody could hold a lane, this would be the deadliest road out there.

Text and phone records will probably show that this person was making calls and/or texts during the trip. She has proven she is willing to drive away from a dying person to protect herself, so she has probably deleted them from her phone, which will be even more incriminating when the records are found.

Whether police actually seek charges will involve a few factors, including the driver and victim's race and class. She is already helped by the fact she's a woman. If she is well-off and white we will never see charges. If the driver was a black man and poor he would be locked up already.

This hit hard for me. He was one of the guys I inspired to be like. This could be any one of of us on most day. So sad. Be safe out there

Sad news. My thoughts and prayers are with his family and loved ones. He had real charisma and energy. He was the kind of guy you could meet once and would never forget. He will be missed dearly.

This one hurts bad. Such a sad thing. I have run that stretch of road many many times, and it's hard to imagine how this could happen. Sending strength to the Chattanooga running community and particularly the Baylor HS runners who have had too much early death to work through lately.

You'll notice in the image in this article his recently deceased mentor and coach Van Townsend dressed in red watching his kick from a distance with his hand shading his eyes:

http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/local/story/2015/sep/21/chattanooga-man-dies-after-being-hit-car-while-jogging/326382/

http://www.letsrun.com/news/2015/01/remembering-van-townsend/

John O'Donnell wrote:

There is an inclination in such situations to tell fellow runners to be careful out there. then we read the details and learn being careful had nothing to do with it: he was facing traffic, wearing reflectivee clothes, on the road shoulder; and he still lost his life. To most of us, this is just the latest in a long line of such stories, and we forget about it in a day or two. To his family and those who loved him, the loss never goes away. All I can say is I'm sorry for the tragic loss.

^ This. I can't tell you how many of my coworkers have already asked "Why don't y'all just run on sidewalks or the Riverwalk (pedestrian path)?"

Because true runners, passionate people like Cameron, NEED to run further than sidewalks can take you. They NEED to explore. And they KNOW what to do in order to explore safely. Yet they end up being chastised (at best) or injured and killed for pursuing their passion.

We don't tell people that they should re-read yesterday's newspaper every day for the next year -- and feel fortunate to even have that. Or tell a guitarist to learn Stairway to Heaven, and then play only that song, every day. So why the widespread urge to stifle this particular passion?

People like me may take a day off to contemplate Cameron's death. And then in a few days, we'll probably go for a run. We might even masochistically run to Moccasin Bend road and try to make sense of what happened. All the while, we'll be thinking that we're some kind of advocates for safer conditions, raising awareness by putting more runners on the road.

But really, we're just the next moving targets.

Sincerest condolences to Cameron's family, friends and community. Chattanooga has lost too many good people under such tragic circumstances.

sorry if this seems trivial.. but why do the reports mention that he was

"wearing reflective shoes" ???

John O'Donnell wrote:

There is an inclination in such situations to tell fellow runners to be careful out there. then we read the details and learn being careful had nothing to do with it: he was facing traffic, wearing reflectivee clothes, on the road shoulder; and he still lost his life. To most of us, this is just the latest in a long line of such stories, and we forget about it in a day or two. To his family and those who loved him, the loss never goes away. All I can say is I'm sorry for the tragic loss.

Absolutely. This is why this loss is so tragic - not only was he a great, gregarious guy, but he was doing everything correctly as a runner on the roads. A loss like this defies logic and makes it exponentially difficult to deal with.

Whoever says women text but men do not is a DB. Its the way it is....wrong but the way it is. Get serious, a good person and running mate died tragically its not time to divide women versus men *(certainly not here)!!!

It's scary out there--I run on the roads almost daily you have to look 360 degrees 24/7.

The chance of something like this happening is why I stopped running on a two lane highway near my house many years ago. RIP

Terrible...

Words always feel hollow in these situations, but my prayers are with the family and friends.

I have been hit by a car at about 35mph while running. Even at that "slow" speed the force that it hits you with is truly indescribable... makes my stomach churn thinking about it. I was lucky as far as injuries, although it did end any running dreams I had. So remember kids:

You are not safe,

they do not see you,

do not get complacent, lost in conversation, thinking someone else is looking.

Don't wear headphones,

etc. etc. you know what to do. Just be safe out there.

It sounds like this guy did everything right. The burden can't be only on the runner, drivers need to take greater responsibility. I just don't see that happening. Even I of all people still get careless at times.