PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh police announced Friday that they were in the process of finalizing paperwork for the arrest of a driver accused of hitting and killing a University of Pittsburgh employee who was riding her bicycle last October.
Authorities said David Witherspoon, 49, of Brackenridge will be charged with homicide by vehicle in the death of Susan Hicks, 34.%
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Police said Hicks, of Pittsburgh’s Morningside neighborhood, died in October after getting pinned between two vehicles near the intersection of Forbes Avenue and Bellefield Street.
The accident happened after one of those cars was rear-ended, forcing it forward and pinning Hicks.
Hicks, who worked for Pitt for the last two years, was taken to UPMC Presbyterian, where she later died.
According to the criminal complaint, Witherspoon was speeding when he caused the chain-reaction crash. Witnesses told police that Witherspoon never hit his brakes.
Authorities said Witherspoon and his car reeked of marijuana, and officer said they found synthetic marijuana in the center console, along with a marijuana cigar on the floor near the pedals. He wasn’t injured but was taken to a hospital as a precaution.
Within the past month,
[ cyclists honored Hicks by picking up where she left off ]
, pedaling from the scene of the crash to her home in Bloomfield. Friends told Channel 11 News that they’re hoping her death brings awareness and change to the city.
"I think (Pittsburgh is) still bike friendly. I think there is still a lot of work going on behind the scenes that we'll continue to see becoming more and more biker friendly,” Courtney Ehrlichman said.