2,500 bikers ride for those hit by IMPD officer

OFF THE WIRE
Many pleased with mayor Ballard's appearance at rally

A crowd of bikers listens to organizers and Mayor Greg Ballard before the start of the ride. - Michelle Pemberton / The Star

A massive contingent of motorcyclists descended on the Indianapolis area today to remember a fellow biker killed when he was hit by an IMPD officer.

The ride to remember Eric Wells, 30, also raised money for the other victims of the crash. Organizers estimate that 2,500 riders participated.

Officer David Bisard hit Wells and his friends around 11:20 a.m. Aug. 6. A blood draw taken from Bisard two hours later showed a blood-alcohol content of 0.19, but the test was conducted in a manner inadmissible in court, causing outrage around the city.


After hours on the road, thousands of motorcyclists converged on Monument Circle in Downtown Indianapolis. - Robert Scheer / The Star

The situation has pitted motorcyclists against the law enforcement community they often support.

But today, Indianapolis officials worked to mend the rift.

Mayor Greg Ballard met the riders at 9 a.m. in Pendleton, Ind., and spoke to them before they started the ride -- which was escorted by officers from the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department.

Ballard noted his service as a U.S. Marine and discussed how many motorcycle enthusiasts show support at military funerals.

He called this "such a painful time in the city right now" and said the families of the victims deserve to know "the truth" of exactly what happened leading up to and directly after the fatal crash.

Many riders were pleased with the comments from Ballard, who announced tougher alcohol rules for police on Saturday.

"He had a fantastic speech this morning," said Curtis Hamm, an organizer of the ride from American Legion Post 117. "He is a man of integrity.
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Background on the Bisard case
IMPD officer was accused of being drunk after he struck two motorcycles stopped at a red light

At 11:20 a.m. on Friday, Aug. 6, 2010, an Indianapolis Metropolitan Police cruiser driven by Officer David Bisard plowed into a group of four riders on three motorcycles stopped at a red light. One rider was killed, and two others critically injured.

A blood test indicated Bisard was drunk and he was initially charged with seven DUI-related felonies. But those chargers were later dropped because the blood test had been mishandled and no other evidence supported the DUI charge.
About the victims:

Rest In Peace Eric Wells
Indianapolis resident Eric Wells, 30, was fatally injured when the police cruiser driven by Bisard struck his motorcycle from behind, hurling him forward against other vehicles stopped at the light.

Wells worked at the U.S. Defense Finance center in Lawrence, as did Mary Mills, 47, and Kurt Weekly, 44, both of Indianapolis, and George Burt, 52, Fishers.

The four friends were on their way to lunch when the accident occurred.

Mills and Weekly, who had been on the same motorcycle, were both critically injured.

Burt was on his own bike next to the others, but was not hit.

None of the riders was wearing a helmet.
Did the motorcyclists follow correct procedures in the accident?

An IMPD report of the accident characterized the motorcyclists as "failing" to move, but traffic safety experts say they did the right thing in staying put.
According to Indiana's traffic code, when an emergency vehicle is approaching from behind, motorists are to "immediately drive to a position parallel to and as close as possible to the right-hand edge or curb of the highway clear of any intersection."

Burt told The Star the riders were stopped in the left lane of the two-lane road when he heard the siren behind them. Weekly and Mills were on one bike, which was in front and on the left side of the lane. Burt was to the back and on the right side of the lane, and Wells was to the back and on the left. Other motorists were in the right-hand lane.

"I heard the sirens coming," Burt said. "I looked to the left, then to the right, and then back, and I see a cop car coming toward us. We can't move to the right, because there are cars stopped to the right. We can't go forward, because there are cars in front of us. What we did, is we stayed put. It's what we are supposed to do. The only avenue for the cop is the left-turn lane, and that was free."

About Officer David Bisard:

DRUNK COPROACH !
A nine-year veteran, Bisard received several awards from the department, including a medal of valor for killing a bank robbery suspect who had ambushed him with an AK-47 in April. He recorded more than 800 arrests in nine years with IMPD, according to records.

As a member of the Noblesville Police Department in the late 1990s, he received awards two years in a row from Mothers Against Drunk Driving and won commendations four years in a row.
Previous accidents:

Bisard also was one of the IMPD's most aggressive officers. Records show his 14 vehicle pursuits were more than any other officer working in Marion County in 2003 and 2004. But in eight years with IMPD, he had five minor on-duty crashes during pursuits.

• July 24, 2002: Bisard struck a fence in the 3300 block of North Baltimore Avenue when a motorist he was chasing jumped out of his car. The police report said Bisard "was forced to veer to the left to avoid striking the subject."
• Dec. 15, 2003: Bisard slid on a snow bank into a fence while chasing a suspect in the 2900 block of North Illinois Street. According to a report, Bisard "came into contact with a large area of snow that was still on the ground. As he was trying to turn, he lost control of his vehicle and slid into a fence."
• Jan. 11, 2004: The driver of a car Bisard was chasing opened the driver's door, and Bisard hit it.
• Sept. 23, 2005: Bisard struck a "small concrete retaining wall" while chasing a suspect in the 3300 block of Forest Manor Avenue.
• Aug. 23, 2007: suspect Bisard was chasing stopped his car, then went into reverse and struck Bisard's squad car.
Why were DUI charges brought against him and then dropped?

State law requires a blood test of drivers involved in every accident involving a serious injury. Bisard took the test about two hours after the crash, a period that police and lawyers said is normal after an accident.

According to an IMPD report, investigators went to Methodist Occupational Health Facility, 1001 S. Eastern Ave., where Bisard was being treated for minor injuries to his arms and to the top of his head, to get a blood draw about 1 p.m. When that sample was later tested, the reading was 0.19. Under Indiana law, a motorist is legally drunk at 0.08.

Police officers who had been at the scene of the accident and in close proximity to Bisard said they had not smelled alcohol on him, nor did he seem drunk. Experts said it would have taken 10 drinks or more to reach a 0.19 level.

Based on the blood test, Bisard was charged with multiple felony counts of DUI and DUI resulting in a death. He was roundly condemned and faced significant prison time.

But then the charges were suddenly dropped. Prosecutors had learned that the lab tech who drew Bisard's blood sample was not certified under Indiana's DUI laws to do such work for a criminal case. Therefore the test results would almost certainly be inadmissible in court.
Charges against Officer Bisard:

Based on the blood-alcohol test Bisard was charged with seven felony counts of drunken driving and reckless homicide

The most serious of those charges was a Class B felony count of operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated, causing death, with a blood-alcohol content at or above 0.15. A Class B felony carries a penalty of six to 20 years in prison or a $10,000 fine.

However, all the DUI-related charges were dropped on Aug. 19 because the blood draw upon the alcohol test was made had not been taken by someone certified to do so in criminal cases.

Bisard still faced one of the original charges -- reckless homicide -- and two new charges of criminal recklessness.
How is this tied to the Hovey Street slaying?

Bisard was one of two officers who first responded to the Hovey Street home where two women and two babies were slain in January 2008.

Defense attorneys representing shooting suspect Ronald L. Davis in the death penalty case said they had long questioned whether police were negligent or incompetent in responding to the crime based on a nearly 30-minute delay in the officers' arrival at the victims' house on the city's Near Northside. A court motion filed Sept. 2 said Bisard's Aug. 6 crash raised new concerns.

the lawyers' aim is to learn whether Bisard has "a long-standing addiction to alcohol" that might have affected his ability to do his job, the motion says. but at least one legal expert said that assertion is a stretch.

Indy Star

original article