A man charged with the death of bicycle rider in a December 2, 2008 hit-and-run auto accident in Alpine has a long history of driving under the influence (DUI), according to authorities.  The car driver, Travis Weber, is no stranger to breaking the law it seems.

The bicycle rider, 30-year old Edward Costa, was riding east in the bike lane on Alpine Boulevard at about 4:50 p.m. when he was struck in a fatal pedestrian accident by a speeding truck, according to a security camera which captured the image.

Our firm’s car accident lawyers in San Diego know from experience that when a bike and a car get in an accident, usually the rider of the bike is the one left with pain and suffering.  To add insult to injury in this instance, the truck driver decided to make it a hit-and-run accident.

After running over Costa and the bike, the driver sped away, fleeing the scene of the auto accident.  Weber — who claimed to have driven to Alpine to buy a pint of Vodka and drank it in his car — told investigators that he thought he had run into a mailbox.

The 44-year old Weber — twice convicted of drunk-driving car accidents in San Diego County and at least once in the state of New York, according to Deputy District Attorney Gordon Paul Davis — also caused an earlier car accident with a woman who was stopped at a red light and fled the scene, but he has told authorities he has no memory of hitting either the woman’s Jetta or the bike rider. 

What he has admitted to, however, was that he was drinking earlier in the day, and he was over the legal alcohol limit when police arrested him two days later.

Weber will face charges of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence, hit-and-run driving causing death and two counts of drunken driving.  If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of 15 years to life in prison.

The San Diego car accident lawyers who work at our firm believe that this man needs to be educated about how to prevent DUI accidents from happening.  For Costa, it might be a lesson that comes too late.

His driving record speaks for itself; he is a hazard to every other driver and pedestrian on or around the road.  He has caused deadly hit-and-run accidents and driven drunk on multiple occasions.  How on earth could we let this man drive a car ever again?

If you were injured and believe that you deserve compensation, then call our bilingual law offices right away at 1-858-551-2090 or click here for a free consultation with an experienced car accident lawyer and find out how we can help you.  We look forward to providing good advice for your case.  There is no fee if no recovery.