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Biker, Car collide on campus

Police have to work with conflicting stories in their investigation of an on-campus car and bicycle accident that occurred shortly after 3 p.m. Tuesday.

Two witnesses on the scene gave almost exact statements to the police of what allegedly happened during the incident, and their accounts matched that of Jatuphol Charoonroy, a graduate student in business administration and the driver of the gray Toyota Camry involved in the accident.

The unidentified male cyclist, who wore a helmet, was taken to the hospital for examination. He had some clear cuts and bruises, mostly on his arm, but witnesses and Charoonroy said that seemed to be the extent of his injuries. They reported to police that after colliding with the back right side of the Camry at the intersection of Lincoln Drive and Chautauqua Street by the north end of the Communications Building, the man got up, ran over to the car, grabbed Charoonroy while he was still in the vehicle and threatened him before walking back to his bicycle.

A small dent on the right side of the Camry matched the witnesses' descriptions.

Once at his bicycle, which was about 60 feet from where Charoonroy pulled his car over to the curb, the man sat down while talking on his cell phone. He did not move from the spot until the ambulance arrived and took him away, but he removed one of his shoes. Because of his injuries, police kept everyone at a distance from the man, so no comment was available.

After the accident, police were walking back and forth between the cyclist and witnesses trying to clarify both sides' stories. Police asked the witnesses if they were "absolutely sure" the cyclist was riding south and not north.

Patricia Davis, a sophomore in radiology from St. Louis, was standing by her car about 50 feet from the accident. She gave her statement to the police, but was not asked to go with them to the station because another witness with an identical account went instead.

"You're supposed to walk your bike through the crosswalks," Davis said, referring to all the signs posted at crosswalks throughout campus. SIUC Chancellor Walter Wendler had the signs put up in Spring 2002 after a number of accidents involving pedestrians and automobiles occurred on campus, including one in Fall 2001 that took the life of SIUC student Anne Coleman.

Reporter Burke Wasson contributed to this story.

Reporter Brian Peach can be reached at bpeach@dailyegyptian.com