Joseph Nelson
Joseph Nelson
Saturday, April 14, 2012
Age: 54
Location:
Jerome Avenue and Fordham Road
New York , NY
United States
Joseph Nelson had been running errands on his bike near his home in the University Heights neighborhood when he was killed in a bike crash at the Fordham Road and Jerome Avenue intersection.
According to DNAInfo, he was a jack-of-all trades who worked as an auto mechanic until an injury forced himt to shift his career to bike messenger.
Sadly, the bike crash was poorly handled by the NYPD Accident Investigation Squad, and the family did not receive an autopsy until several months after the crash. Apparently, a driver had opened a car door that struck Nelson, but no witnesses or documenttion could be found to substantiate the claim.
The Nelson family does not feel that there has been a resolution to the case which was closed seven months later.
From DNAInfo:
“I know the police are not miracle workers, but this happened in broad daylight,” Nelson said.
The Nelson family believes this is an example of a problem frequently cited by critics — that the NYPD’s response to traffic accidents is inadequate and results in few arrests.
They treated him as though he never existed," Nelson said. "But he was somebody. He was a person."
Meanwhile, John Nelson reached the AIS detective in charge of his brother’s case for the first time this week.
The detective said the squad had been unable to gather any video or other evidence of the crash, according to Nelson. Therefore, they will close the case this month.
“I don’t feel as if there was any resolution,” Nelson said. “A lot of questions are still up in the air.”
UPDATE: According to DNAInfo (http://www.dnainfo.com/new-york/20130418/fordham/tour-of-citys-ghost-bikes-honor-bronx-man-killed-unsolved-crash), Joseph Nelsons brother, John, plans to travel "more than 400 miles" to attend the memorial on Sunday, April 21 in order "to show people that he [Joseph] was a human being."
Saturday, April 14, 2012
Age: 54
Location:
Jerome Avenue and Fordham Road
New York , NY
United States
Joseph Nelson had been running errands on his bike near his home in the University Heights neighborhood when he was killed in a bike crash at the Fordham Road and Jerome Avenue intersection.
According to DNAInfo, he was a jack-of-all trades who worked as an auto mechanic until an injury forced himt to shift his career to bike messenger.
Sadly, the bike crash was poorly handled by the NYPD Accident Investigation Squad, and the family did not receive an autopsy until several months after the crash. Apparently, a driver had opened a car door that struck Nelson, but no witnesses or documenttion could be found to substantiate the claim.
The Nelson family does not feel that there has been a resolution to the case which was closed seven months later.
From DNAInfo:
“I know the police are not miracle workers, but this happened in broad daylight,” Nelson said.
The Nelson family believes this is an example of a problem frequently cited by critics — that the NYPD’s response to traffic accidents is inadequate and results in few arrests.
They treated him as though he never existed," Nelson said. "But he was somebody. He was a person."
Meanwhile, John Nelson reached the AIS detective in charge of his brother’s case for the first time this week.
The detective said the squad had been unable to gather any video or other evidence of the crash, according to Nelson. Therefore, they will close the case this month.
“I don’t feel as if there was any resolution,” Nelson said. “A lot of questions are still up in the air.”
UPDATE: According to DNAInfo (http://www.dnainfo.com/new-york/20130418/fordham/tour-of-citys-ghost-bikes-honor-bronx-man-killed-unsolved-crash), Joseph Nelsons brother, John, plans to travel "more than 400 miles" to attend the memorial on Sunday, April 21 in order "to show people that he [Joseph] was a human being."