Cycling community wants tough sentence for doctor who deliberately struck 2 bicyclists
By APFriday, January 8, 2010
Doctor may get 8 years prison for hitting cyclists
LOS ANGELES — A former Los Angeles doctor is being sentenced for running down two bicyclists in a road rage assault.
Prosecutors want Christopher Thompson ordered to prison for eight years at his sentencing Friday morning. They say he argued with the cyclists July 4, 2008, before slamming on his brakes in front of them. One cyclist who went through the car window suffered broken teeth, cuts and had to have his nose reattached.
The 60-year-old former emergency room physician has been in jail since jurors convicted him of mayhem, assault with a deadly weapon and other charges in November.
The court has been deluged with letters from cyclists saying a harsh sentence would send a strong message to hostile motorists.
