Defendant says he was trying to photograph people who were riding dangerously on narrow Mandeville Canyon Road.

By Jack Leonard @ LA Times

October 29, 2009

A doctor charged with assault for allegedly slamming on his car brakes in front of two cyclists in Brentwood testified Wednesday that he never intended to hurt anyone but stopped his vehicle to photograph riders who were cycling dangerously.

Christopher Thompson, a veteran emergency room physician, said a group of cyclists flipped him off and yelled profanities when he overtook them last year as they rode three abreast down Mandeville Canyon Road, a narrow residential street that is popular with bike riders.

Thompson, 60, said he objected to cyclists blocking traffic by riding in tandem or running stop signs along Mandeville, where he has lived for more than two decades. He said many neighbors were concerned about the problems but had struggled to identify the scofflaws.

His voice shaking at one point, Thompson said he had never forgotten learning when he was 14 that a close friend had been run over and killed while riding a bicycle. He testified that he felt uncomfortable driving behind cyclists and would never try to injure one.

“I wake up every night . . . with this accident in my head,” he told jurors, near tears. “I lived my life trying to help people and I injured people. And I’ll never get over that.”

Thompson’s testimony marked the first time he has spoken publicly about his actions in the moments before the July 4, 2008, crash. The incident outraged cyclists and highlighted tensions between bike riders and residents along the road.

One of the cyclists was propelled through the rear windshield of the doctor’s luxury car, breaking his front teeth and nose and leaving his face scarred. The second cyclist was thrown to the ground and suffered a separated shoulder.

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