Manhattan prosecutors said that the bus driver involved in the city’s first Citi Bike fatality could have avoided the tragic collision.
“It was a day of mourning. It was a day of loss. It was a day that can never be forgotten for many people but mostly for the friends and family of the late Dan Hanegby,” said Assistant District Attorney Raffaela Belizaire in her opening statement at driver Dave Lewis’ non-jury trial.
She said that Lewis, 52, spotted Hanegby riding west on 26th Street, the same direction as his bus, honked at him then tried to pass him near Eighth Avenue.
“He fully appreciated it was dangerous to try to pass, to try to squeeze through,” the prosecutor said of the June 12, 2017, collision that killed the Credit Suisse banker.
Hanegby, a father of two, toppled off his bike and was crushed under the rear wheel of the 50,000-pound bus.
Although Lewis stopped and waited for police, Belizaire said, “That subsequent cooperation couldn’t undo his prior error in judgment.”
The victim’s wife wept as she listened to the prosecutor’s account.
Defense lawyer Jeremy Saland argued in Manhattan Criminal Court that it was the victim who had behaved imprudently.
“Upon Mr. Hanegby’s ears were Beats, large over-the-ear headphones,” said the attorney. “He also was not wearing a helmet.”
Lewis honked “with a blaring horn” but Hanegby, 36, appeared not hear the warning, Saland said.
Hanegby’s death marked the first time since Citi Bike started its ride-share program in 2013 that a rider was killed.
Lewis, who was offered a no-jail plea deal, pushed for a trial and faces up to 30 days in jail if convicted.