Virginia court awards $1.5M to estate of cyclist killed in traffic accident

"Today we raise awareness of bicycle safety in a way that we hope can begin to transform the understanding that bicycle safety is not about the bike. It's about the car," attorney John Lichtenstein said Tuesday. "It's about all of us having a light bulb that goes off to say, 'I see the cyclist. I've got duties under the law. I've got to protect that cyclist.'"

Tabitha Leigh Thompson, 39, of Fincastle died on February 11, 2022 after she was hit by a 2014 Dodge Journey on U.S. 11 north of Troutville.

Danielle Marie Rock, also of Fincastle, was charged with reckless driving in the fatal incident. Last July, she received a 12-month sentence. Eleven of those months were suspended, and she was ordered to serve the remaining 30 days on home electronic monitoring.

After the criminal case was resolved, Lichtenstein said he worked with her husband, Matt Thompson, to file a wrongful death lawsuit against the driver and the involved auto insurance company, according to Virginia's circuit court case information system.

"We brought the action to the defendant and the insurance carrier and ultimately negotiated the resolution of the case, and that was presented to the court," Lichtenstein said at a gathering outside his office Tuesday afternoon. After a hearing that morning, "the case resolved for the complete and full extent of the applicable liability insurance coverage of $1.5 million."

Lichtenstein said Tabitha Thompson was "exactly there she was supposed to be" when she was struck.

"Tabitha was riding lawfully and properly. She was one foot and one inch from the right side of the highway," the attorney said. "The vehicle that hit her from behind did not stop, had not braked, had not laid down skid marks. It was a five football field length of visibility."

Lichtenstein said Virginia law requires motorists to provide three feet of space between their vehicle and a cyclist when passing a cyclist on a roadway. He added that motorists are not permitted to hold a cell phone while operating a vehicle, which was "also an element" in Thompson's case.

Matt Thompson said Tuesday that no judgement in civil or criminal court could offset the loss of his wife.

"However, we won't allow Tab's light to be fully extinguished," he said before the gathering of cyclists, family and friends. "Her communities came together and demonstrated the enormous impact of one tiny person. Today we'll continue to carry that light in hopes to be a movement that alters the driving culture in our region."

The husband hopes the greater Roanoke community can work "to increase the statutory consequences for violations leading to the physical injury or death of our neighbors and loved ones."

Robert Issem coordinates traffic safety campaigns in Roanoke. He said the city's latest effort, the Change Lanes to Pass Campaign, will launch on Saturday and run through July 21.

The campaign's press release notes that if travel lanes aren't wide enough to allow drivers to pass cyclists with three feet of space, "the driver must change lanes," according to Virginia code.

"According to our crash data, we know that crashes involving bicyclists has increased in Roanoke since 2008," Issem said Tuesday. "Changing lanes to pass leads to fewer crashes, deaths and injuries. We can all work together and that's crucial to make our streets safer."

Frank Maguire, board member of nonprofit PedalSafe ROA and Roanoke Valley Greenway coordinator, said "a tragedy like Tabitha's death reminds us that everyone on our roadways is a person and deserves to get home safely."

"Everybody who bikes on roads has stories about close calls with people driving," Maguire said. "People ride bikes because they enjoy it. It provides exercise, it provides mental health, and it provides connection to the outdoors or the community. But the most important part of every ride is arriving home safely. Drivers have the opportunity every time they drive to help make that happen."

Emma Coleman (540) [email protected]