I was ambushed

[Bkat]

Let's just say I found another reason to wear a helmet while riding.

I was about a mile from home (Irving Park Road & Sheridan Road in Chicago) when car A cut me off to make a right turn in front of me. She winged me with her car and, when I tried to catch my balance, my chain skipped the ring. The driver of the car is yelling at me to go (which I couldn't do since my chain was still messed up) and then the driver of car B, who didn't like the fact he was being delayed, hopped out of his car, came up from behind and sucker punched me in the head without saying a word. He then proceeded to continue punching me until he had me and my bike on the ground. (It's tough to fight back when you're still clipped in and wearing big ol' expedition weight mittens.)

Anyways, a lot of people saw what was happening. The woman in the car behind hopped out of her car and got his license plate (thanks April!) and a fourth car took chase after the culprit and his group (there were 3 people with him) fled once they saw they had an audience. (But not before stealing one of my mittens.)

Long story short, Chicago Police came and were very nice but, because it was an out of state plate and because they couldn't find the car (which had, strangely, parked around the corner for a while before fleeing) they said there's not a lot they can do other than file a battery report. One of the officers did find my stolen mitten. Seems the perp decided to dump it in the road down the block since they didn't want to be caught with evidence.

I'm a bit stiff and my poor Hampsten is a bit scuffed, but fortunately damage doesn't look too severe. I haven't given my bike the once over yet (it's still covered in road grime from today's ride) and my kit is a bit grubby from the city street, but I'm taking it easy for the rest of the day and will deal with that stuff later. Guess it's good I had on so many layers.

But if you see a light colored car with the license plate VQL543, the guy's a real dirtbag. And wanted for battery.

[oldguy00]

In this day and age, given a full plate number, they can't ID the car just because it is out of state???

[vqdriver]

:eek:
wow. i thought people here didn't like cyclists..
glad to hear some there's sane people mixed in with the nuts.

[beeatnik]

Wow, glad you're OK. What a horrible encounter. One of my worst nightmares actually as I've ridden with a few friends who have cyclist road rage. After a few incidents (angry pals thinking 2 guys on bikes can take on a car) and imagining all the possible scenarios, I've been able to control my emotions in many touch-and-go situations. But I still worry about a lunatic attacking me for no reason other than my presence on the road. Out here I'm always extra careful around Priuses (ya, I know) and late model black imports with tinted windows (if you've been in Glendale, CA, you know what I'm talking about).

[Aaron O]

In this day and age, given a full plate number, they can't ID the car just because it is out of state???

+1 - I'm not buying this either. If the person attacked the wife of another officer, something tells me there'd be more they could do. I would advise continuing to speak with supervisors and pushing/advocating for action. You have to do it gently, diplomatically, but firmly. Also consider contacting a local cycling advocacy group - ours are connected quite well.

The police around me seem to do the absolute bare minimum as well...I find it incredibly frustrating.

[zap]

Holy cow, unreal. Glad you are relatively ok.

Police. Get after them. They are perfectly capable of collecting money from out of state drivers. I would hope they would put in the same effort (and more) for you.

[AngryScientist]

that is an incredible story.

sounds highly probably the guy was on some sort of drugs- normal, balanced individuals just dont do that kind of stuff.

glad to hear you made it out pretty much OK. no one deserves that kind of crap.

[Aaron O]

that is an incredible story.

sounds highly probably the guy was on some sort of drugs- normal, balanced individuals just dont do that kind of stuff.

glad to hear you made it out pretty much OK. no one deserves that kind of crap.

I think a lot of these stories have a common theme - group action. Lone individuals don't usually behave this poorly, but add a couple other morons into the gumbo and they're braver, bolder and dumber. They egg one another on. Group intelligence seems to take on the IQ and personality of its dumbest member.

Filthy cowardly trash.

[Bkat]

Thanks. Once I rest a bit I do want to do more than just forget it, especially since, if he did it to me, he most certainly would do it to someone else. I agree it does sound odd than running those plate numbers through some sort of data base wouldn't turn something. While that wouldn't necessarily turn the driver, it would flag the car which is a step in the right direction. I guess because it was "just" battery and I wasn't taken to the hospital, it's just another case of road rage. (Yawn.) But someone like that should not be driving a car. I'm still going over it in my head and I'm confounded how this played out. It's not like he and I were exchanging words then it escalated.

I would like to credit my ninja-like skills and am a bit surprised a guy that blind-sided me and was bigger than me didn't do more damage, but I guess I was well armored.

Anyways, I like to believe people like him have their comeuppance. I may not get to witness it, but sooner or later...

[cnighbor1]

Your car insurance company might help. they did for me when on my bicycle and hit my a car. also check your home owners insurance it might cover. Has you have the license plate number owner of car libel for what happens with his car.

[Aaron O]

Thanks. Once I rest a bit I do want to do more than just forget it, especially since, if he did it to me, he most certainly would do it to someone else. I agree it does sound odd than running those plate numbers through some sort of data base wouldn't turn something. While that wouldn't necessarily turn the driver, it would flag the car which is a step in the right direction. I guess because it was "just" battery and I wasn't taken to the hospital, it's just another case of road rage. (Yawn.) But someone like that should not be driving a car. I'm still going over it in my head and I'm confounded how this played out. It's not like he and I were exchanging words then it escalated.

I would like to credit my ninja-like skills and am a bit surprised a guy that blind-sided me and was bigger than me didn't do more damage, but I guess I was well armored.

Anyways, I like to believe people like him have their comeuppance. I may not get to witness it, but sooner or later...
The comeuppance is that he has to be that moron and wake up every day in that skin. Well adjusted people with a stake in society don't do that...just imagine what this turd's life must be like. You'll heal, he will likely always be the dross of the gene pool.

[Shortsocks]

Jesus. Im Extremely sorry to hear about this. Please please dont let it get to you...Its an random act of violence. There are much better people out there, cyclists here can prove that :banana:.

If you're ever in Dallas a beer or a cup of joe is on me.

Socks

[Bkat]

Your car insurance company might help. they did for me when on my bicycle and hit my a car. also check your home owners insurance it might cover. Has you have the license plate number owner of car libel for what happens with his car.

That's a good idea. Car insurance companies can be persistent and, even if the clown isn't the owner of the car, it could flush him out. Thanks.

[Bkat]

I do appreciate all the support from everyone. It did sort of bother me at first (it really upset my wife) but I figured, the lung fluke and his friends were (and are) essentially outnumbered. Heck, when it all came down one woman got out of her car so they knew they were witnesses, wrote down details and hung around until police came (and offered to drive me home if I wasn't capable), several people came over to assist, and one guy took off in his car in pursuit and came back to give police the location. (Too bad they moved the car.) So yes, there's evil and stupid in the world. But it really isn't the majority.

[Veloo]

+1 - I'm not buying this either. If the person attacked the wife of another officer, something tells me there'd be more they could do. I would advise continuing to speak with supervisors and pushing/advocating for action. You have to do it gently, diplomatically, but firmly. Also consider contacting a local cycling advocacy group - ours are connected quite well.

The police around me seem to do the absolute bare minimum as well...I find it incredibly frustrating.

Glad you're OK. Unbelievable!
And yeah, isn't that the whole point about having State/ Province on a plate and a unique combination of numbers and letters? That's like saying - Yeah we have the person's name and address but there's little we can do about it.

[Bkat]

Glad you're OK. Unbelievable!
And yeah, isn't that the whole point about having State/ Province on a plate and a unique combination of numbers and letters? That's like saying - Yeah we have the person's name and address but there's little we can do about it.
The problem is, we don't have the state. But how many VGL543 can there be in the US?

[verticaldoug]

It sounds like someone wanted to play the knock-out game. Thanks to the news media for putting this idea into dumbdumb heads.

[Peter P.]

This is easy: run the tag for all 50 states; you can probably exclude Alaska and Hawaii. Then cross reference the registered owners names with cell phone carriers. Since so many people own cell phones you're likely to have a bunch of hits. Then check to see if any of the cell phone results' phones registered with local cell sites around the time of the attack.

Like someone else said; if the victim was related to a Chicago cop, they'd be all over this.

[OtayBW]

Geez. Unbelievable. Just goes to show you that 'Redneck' comes in all shapes, sizes, and locations. I seriously hope you can pursue this and bring these dipwads to some accountability. :mad:

[bargainguy]

First: Sorry to hear, glad you're relatively OK.

Second: I'd be parked at that police station's captain's desk till I got answers. Seriously.

This smacks of "we really don't want to lift a finger unless we get a court order" kind of attitude.

I doubt they have the same difficulty with out-of-state plates involved in fatal accidents or more serious crimes. If they did, we'd all be committing out of state crimes because we could get away with them.

[charliedid]

Very sorry to hear that...

If that is the correct # it can be found regardless of which state.

Good guy to call: http://lawyerjimfreeman.com/

[Bkat]

Very sorry to hear that...

If that is the correct # it can be found regardless of which state.

Good guy to call: http://lawyerjimfreeman.com/

Two witnesses separately told police the same plate number. So we have a good fix on that.

One of the cops was pretty fun. When the woman who stopped to help was telling him how Car #1 hit me, then the driver of Car #2 hit me, he interrupted and dead panned, "and then you hit him too?" She said "No!" Then he said, "Well, I thought there was a pattern developing."

Ha!

[YoKev]

Go to each states DMV website and check for availability of a custom/vanity plate with the license plate number she got. That may narrow it down a little.

[roguedog]

···...

Glad to hear it wasn't more serious but damn .. where the hell is the "To serve and protect" part these days??

I want Andy Griffith back...

[charliedid]

Two witnesses separately told police the same plate number. So we have a good fix on that.

One of the cops was pretty fun. When the woman who stopped to help was telling him how Car #1 hit me, then the driver of Car #2 hit me, he interrupted and dead panned, "and then you hit him too?" She said "No!" Then he said, "Well, I thought there was a pattern developing."

Ha!

Gotta love them boys in Blue

Glad you're okay.

I've commuted for 27 years here in Chicago relatively incident free...and I still think it's a pretty easy place to commute. We certainly have had some screwed up incidents lately (yours included) but these are thankfully few and far between. The more people on bikes the better but its gonna have some issues.

I swear the people I know who seem to get into altercations etc. are more aggressive and feel just a bit too entitled IMO. Not saying anything about you BTW.

Be safe out there, and I would pursue this one...these guys are ass9oles and you just happened to run across their path. Could have been anyone doing just about anything that set them off. Forget the Bikes vs Cars thing,unless it ends up proven you were singled out as a cyclist, this was plain and simple battery and that can't stand.

[shovelhd]

It would bother the heck out of me.

Were you doing anything to provoke the guy's insanity? Taking the lane? Passing stopped traffic on the right? Yelling at anyone?

[pbarry]

It would bother the heck out of me.

Were you doing anything to provoke the guy's insanity? Taking the lane? Passing stopped traffic on the right? Yelling at anyone?

Common', he was riding a Hampsten.. What would Andy do? :cool:

[ultraman6970]

As many here i find just stupid that the cops could not even bother to tell you who was the owner of the plate... VGL543??

I would try to call those lawyers in the link, sure they will find the mofo that did that, second the insurance company wmight want answers aswell because they won't be happy to pay for anything that is being claimed. Any cop in the forums willing to help?

The other thing is, if the car, model and year (aprox) of the car plus the license plate this could nail the thing big time. Hope you get some justice.

http://demosrch5.publicdata.com/pdsearch.php?p1=VGL543&input=grp_dmv_plate&tacDMV=DPPA-15&type=plate&dlnumber=DEMO&dlstate=DEMO&id=DEMO&identifier=&sessionid=&o=grp_dmv_plate

[Bkat]

I woke up this morning with a rather seriously sore neck. I'll be going to the doctor to have it checked out. I appreciate all the support and suggestions. Once the dust in my brain settled down a bit, I actually recalled more details that can help ID the culprit. Stay tuned. I'm not going to just let him off the hook. If he did it to me, he'll likely do it again and the next person may get hurt worse.

[Aaron O]

I woke up this morning with a rather seriously sore neck. I'll be going to the doctor to have it checked out. I appreciate all the support and suggestions. Once the dust in my brain settled down a bit, I actually recalled more details that can help ID the culprit. Stay tuned. I'm not going to just let him off the hook. If he did it to me, he'll likely do it again and the next person may get hurt worse.

You're a good man Charlie Brown...best wishes and a speedy recovery.

[malcolm]

As many here i find just stupid that the cops could not even bother to tell you who was the owner of the plate... VGL543??

I would try to call those lawyers in the link, sure they will find the mofo that did that, second the insurance company wmight want answers aswell because they won't be happy to pay for anything that is being claimed. Any cop in the forums willing to help?

The other thing is, if the car, model and year (aprox) of the car plus the license plate this could nail the thing big time. Hope you get some justice.

http://demosrch5.publicdata.com/pdsearch.php?p1=VGL543&input=grp_dmv_plate&tacDMV=DPPA-15&type=plate&dlnumber=DEMO&dlstate=DEMO&id=DEMO&identifier=&sessionid=&o=grp_dmv_plate

Don't waste your time with private license plate search companies. They are not free and DMVs don't release numbers to private companies, so any data they have will be old numbers that are probably not in use or not to the current user anyway.

I do agree if the police though it was serious or if it were a city councilman or police chief they could narrow it down fairly easily.

[Bkat]

Correction. That was license plate VQL543. I mis-typed earlier.

[DAG]

Here are the states with seven-letter plates:
Alabama
Arizona
California
Delaware
Georgia
Idaho
Illinois
Michigan
New Hampshire
New York
North Carolina
Ohio
Pennsylvania
Texas
Virginia
Washington
Wyoming

Considering geographic locality, I would look for an Indiana or Wisconsin registration. Of course, if you remembered the color of the plate, that would work to narrow things down as well.

[vintag3]

What a terrible experience! Glad you're well. Its always frustrating to hear the police can't seem to help. And even with the license plate number

[Hawker]

Call a local TV station and ask for the Consumer Investigation reporter. Tell him or her what happened and the police can't find the perp because the plates are out of state...see what happens. That is just the lamest excuse I have ever heard. If you had been shot dead, they would be able to trace the plate.

[malcolm]

Quick look on Wikipedia, I think about 12 states currently use ABC 123 license plates.

[tmf]

I'm from Indiana, and I'm pretty sure if I drove through a toll booth without paying they would find me based on my plate number (don't ask me how I know that...).

When I'm riding, I often practice reading and remembering plate numbers as cars go by. I haven't had to use that yet, but hopefully I'm sharpening my ability to do so if needed.

[jamie789]

Wow. Sorry to hear this but glad you're ok.
I've heard some cazy stories like yours that happened in Chicago. There are a lot of bike advocacy groups and also crash support resources/group there. Have you talked about this on the chain link forum? I think they would be very helpful and have local resources and connectons. You could also check with active transportation alliance for assistance.

I know there are some lawyers in Chicago that specialize in bike related incidents. I used to be a courier there and had friends who had success going that route, although it was a very long and drawn out process. If you would like I think I could get you the names of a couple of those lawyers.

[josephr]

I'm from Indiana, and I'm pretty sure if I drove through a toll booth without paying they would find me based on my plate number (don't ask me how I know that...).

When I'm riding, I often practice reading and remembering plate numbers as cars go by. I haven't had to use that yet, but hopefully I'm sharpening my ability to do so if needed.

I misplaced my parking deck stub in ATL and they looked up the time I entered the parking deck by my tag number....took less than 5 minutes.

OP- Sounds like there's a lot of positive coming out of this -- even if you don't find the guy, lets hope he realizes some regret or at least thinks twice before doing something irrational like that.

the good thing is -- you're OK...the bike is OK.
Joe

[djdj]

I don't know if anyone has mentioned this theory, but I bet the driver of car A and the miscreant in car B were/are associated in some way. He sees you in a dispute with her and decides to be a "macho man" for her (but, of course, not too macho, since he sucker-punched you).

[uno-speedo]

I'm not suggesting you do this, but you could tweet the number plate with relevant hash tags and get the local cycling community on the hunt.

[Bkat]

I don't know if anyone has mentioned this theory, but I bet the driver of car A and the miscreant in car B were/are associated in some way. He sees you in a dispute with her and decides to be a "macho man" for her (but, of course, not too macho, since he sucker-punched you).

I had a similar thought as well. (At 3am. I wasn't sleeping too well.) Think I can get an endorsement deal from Giro since I'm living proof their helmets work? Saved me a few stitches when he punched my head.

Jamie789, I am exploring the lawyer route and yes, cross-posted on Chainlink to get the word out locally. Thanks.

[seanile]

I had a similar thought as well. (At 3am. I wasn't sleeping too well.) Think I can get an endorsement deal from Giro since I'm living proof their helmets work? Saved me a few stitches when he punched my head.

haha theyll often give discounts for crash replacements, i bet if you told them what happened here you'd get a free helmet easy.

please keep updating with how this proceeds, i'm fuming just thinking about how people can be so effed up to do stuff like this..

[marsh]

CPD only has access to Illinois plates. Maybe they could call other states and have them look it up, but considering we are the murder capital of the US, it would be tough to get them to take the time. I would call Lawyer Jim. Hopefully you have the contact info of some of the witnesses. When I got rammed off the road and the driver came at me with a tire iron (my empty bag hit his passenger mirror), the responding cop said not a whole lot could happen because there were no witnesses. He did look up the plates and provided the name and address of the driver, so that was cool.

[Bkat]

Well, I just was informed Indiana, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Michigan are no match either. It is possible that if they are expired, they no longer show up in the system. With two separate witnesses both seeing VQL 543, it makes me think we have the right number. We're just missing a piece to the puzzle.

[Bkat]

Quick look on Wikipedia, I think about 12 states currently use ABC 123 license plates.

All 12 have struck out.

[malcolm]

All 12 have struck out.

There were a couple others but they were US territories of the US and maybe Hawaii. I figured that would have been to long a drive for Chicago.

[Bkat]

There were a couple others but they were US territories of the US and maybe Hawaii. I figured that would have been to long a drive for Chicago.

Yup. We caught those too. Besides, if the assailant was really from somewhere like the US Virgin Islands, he wouldn't have been so high strung I reckon.

[sand fungus]

I believe Canada (Manitoba) also has the same number format... A little farther away but not too far.

[Bkat]

I believe Canada (Manitoba) also has the same number format... A little farther away but not too far.

A Canadian? But they are a peaceful lot. Thanks for the suggestion. It may take some time but I'm hoping we'll eventually be able to connect the dots.

[Anarchist]

I believe Canada (Manitoba) also has the same number format... A little farther away but not too far.

As do Saskatchewan, Alberta and BC.

Probably the Maritime provinces as well, can't remember.

[summilux]

Most Ontario plates are that format too.

[verticaldoug]

isn't it more probable the eyewitness license plate is wrong?
I suggest you just move on.

[Bkat]

isn't it more probable the eyewitness license plate is wrong?
I suggest you just move on.

Thanks for the "advice" but two separate witnesses with the exact same information makes me want to hang around this a while longer.

[Hawker]

OP, I went to Searchquarry.com and plugged in your license number and was informed they found it...and for $4.95 they will tell me who it is. I suspect there must be more to it than this or the cops would have figured it out.

None the less, just thought I'd let you know.

[sc53]

Even though Virginia uses 7-character plates now, for current plates, there are tons of "grandfathered" 6-character plates out there roaming around. So don't rule out the states that issue their current plates with 7 characters. Plenty of old 6-character plates still in service. And if you have a military base anywhere near you, you will find cars with plates from all over the USA, including Alaska and Hawaii. Military can license their vehicles with the plates of their domicile state, not state of residence. Here in metro DC we have tons of out of state plates due to Congressional types and military people all over the place!
That plate is findable. It won't necessarily prove that whoever is driving the vehicle with that plate on it is the person who assaulted you.
I think it sounds a lot like "the knock-out game," which we've had a few incidents of around here. Really stupid.

[Bkat]

Thanks for trying. I had heard those search sites are frauds. I did input the plate (VQL 543) on the site you used and ran it for IL, then IN, then MI. It claimed "success" with all three, which makes me suspicious.

As for the fact the owner of the plate isn't necessarily the culprit, this is true. But since the car hit me they would have liability issues and, considering the car was tied to a battery, their insurance company would be none too pleased. Anyways, I would recognize the assailant.

It will come as no surprise, but I've thought about this a little. (!) My hunch is, it's not the knockout game, just some guy who wanted to pretend he's tough and trying to show off. First off, I'm guessing it was his girlfriend in the passenger seat. This doesn't necessarily mean anything, but since it was the driver who got out, came over and tried to use my head as a punching bag, he left three people sitting in an idling car with the driver's door open. I'd think that if it was a group planned effort, they wouldn't leave the driver seat empty. That would just be poor planning.

Anyways, I'm hoping he hurt his hand. He swung hard on his first punch and it landed square on my helmet. That had to sting.

[verticaldoug]

Is it intersection of W Irving and N Sheridan? I did the google street tour and there was a Chase Bank Branch facing the intersection. I bet they have a security camera on the door. facing the street. You know time and day. Worth a try. At least this is how it works on Law & Order.

[Dustin]

What is this like the Dukes of Hazard where the long arm of the law can't reach you if you cross the county line? Unbelievable.

[Bkat]

Technically, it was Irving Park & Marine Drive, which turns into Lakeshore for a couple blocks which then turns into Sheridan south of where we were at. Very confusing. Which is why I just left it. Anyways, there's a school right there and police were going to canvas for video. I haven't heard beyond that. I did check with CDOT. No red light camera there.

Dustin, it's actually more like Smokey and the Bandit.

But seriously, CPD are being great. For whatever reason, they just aren't getting a hit on the plate. But, like I was told, if it's an old plate that hasn't been re-registered, they get dropped by the system and, unfortunately, there are a lot of bad plates out there. I used to think there was this national data base and that all the states were somehow connected so that police just needed to type in a number. Turns out that's not the case and apparently, states don't keep the old records live.

This may come down to the old fashioned way of catching someone. The culprit may live right around there or one of their friends do. Or, at some point he'll get stopped for speeding and this will pop up in the system.

[slidey]

Just came by this post now...bloody outrageous. I'd like to think that you had the rare misfortune of encountering an ape that was taught driving through cartoons. Glad that you're doing better, very surprised at the lack of a nationalised DB accessible by local law-enforcement.

We know for a fact that the data about motor vehicles registry is being collected, and is being stored but what bloody use is all of that if there's no way of using it. Idiots! :mad:

[Tony T]

All 12 have struck out.

It might be worth the cost to hire someone to do the search (and I don't mean using an internet search company).
Meet with a lawyer (if you haven't already) and get a recommendation for an investigator.

[AJosiahK]

Thats insane. Glad you weren't hurt worse. People amaze me sometimes, with their crazy selfish attitudes.

Tony T has a good point, Im sure there are a few lawyers in Chicago who deal specifically with bicycle incidents.

Good luck

[Bkat]

Thanks. I actually have talked to an attorney but there's not much they can do. Fortunately, Chicago Police are being incredible and are actively investigating.

[rice rocket]

I didn't catch this the first time around. If you guys want to do a rudimentary plate search, many states allow you to search their database via their vanity plates section. You can tell whether it's taken or not.

[Bkat]

Anyways, I didn't catch this the first time around. If you guys want to do a rudimentary plate search, many states allow you to search their database via their vanity plates section. You can tell whether it's taken or not.

Thanks for the suggestion but in this case it won't work. Several states don't have searchable databases and others don't allow plates like the one in question (VQL 543) to be vanity plates since they limit the number of numbers to two.

One possible scenario is that it's an older, expired plate which doesn't show up in the searchable database. Police told me there's a lot of these sorts of plates driving around, and it's frustrating for them.