League City Driver Arrested after Fatal Hit and Run of Bicyclist | DENENA | POINTS

League City Driver Arrested after Fatal Hit and Run of Bicyclist

Dena McKenzie, 49, of League City has been arrested and charged with a 2nd degree felony in thedeath of bicyclist Kevin Munson. McKenzie reportedly struck and killed Mr. Munson with her vehicle as he was riding his bicycle. Reports say that McKenzie then parked her vehicle right underneath a video surveillance camera in the Waterford Harbor subdivision and proceeded to try and repair the damage caused by hitting Mr. Munson. The Houston bicycle accident attorneys at Denena Points, PC express their sympathies to the family and friends of Kevin Munson.

Our Houston bicycle accident attorneys point out that many hit-and-run crimes go unsolved, but most perpetrators don’t park right underneath a video surveillance camera after committing their fatal acts. Police are crediting social media, which apparently circulated the video, with helping to solve the crime.

Bicyclists and Pedestrians Sustain the Most Injuries and Fatalities from Hit and Run Drivers

Bicyclists and pedestrians suffer disproportionately from hit and run drivers. Their smaller mass is no match for a motor vehicle. And their danger is compounded by the fact that drivers aren’t typically as aware of smaller vehicles or pedestrians on the road as they are of vehicles their own size or larger. However good a driver’s intentions may be and however much they might believe in sharing the road, it remains difficult to adjust one’s vehicle speed and direction, especially in busy traffic, to account for bicycles on the road.

Houston Announces Safe Sunday Streets Initiative for Cyclists and Pedestrians

The mayor of Houston just announced an initiative to help provide bicyclists some relief from traffic fears. “Sunday Streets”  in Houston will close varying thoroughfares on Sundays to motor vehicle traffic so that cyclists and pedestrians can take in the local neighborhoods safely and without the need to dodge impatient or inattentive drivers. Merchants, who expect greater foot traffic, are pleased at the imitative, as are pedestrians and bicyclists. Expectedly, many drivers are frustrated at the potential delays and detours they will face.

But the Sunday Streets Houston initiative is only the latest open streets program in a successful, worldwide, 30-year string of such initiatives. Currently, there are about 200 other such open streets programs worldwide, and they have worked well. Texas, which is more motor vehicle-centric than most other places, sorely needs such initiatives to encourage cyclists and pedestrians to get out and enjoy what local neighborhoods have to offer. And the program offers them a chance to use the roads without fear of being run down by errant motor vehicles.

The Houston bicycle accident attorneys at Denena Points, PC are pleased that the hit and run driver was caught and that Kevin Munson’s family has a chance to find justice. And we hope that the new Sunday Streets initiative can provide bicyclists safe venues to ride so that such tragedies as Mr. Munson’s death can be avoided in the future. Click the link to read about another tragic hit and run that killed a bicyclist but also ended with the driver’s arrest at Austin’s SXSW festival.