Riders killed when running from police
After two recent deaths of riders running from police, BARFers might want to know how often motorcyclists are killed in pursuits and what they have in common. Because the US DOT traffic fatality database identifies drivers running from cops it's fairly easy to analyze these cases. In this post I present data about California and Bay Area riders killed in pursuits (not included are crashes like the recent one in Palo Alto where someone else being pursued hit and killed a motorcyclist). If you're interested in other factors, post up your question, and I'll answer it if I can.
From 2005 to 2010, 51 California riders died while running from police, 14 in the Bay Area. Nearly all were on sportbikes. Of the California total, 42 rode sportbikes while most of the rest were on cruisers. In the Bay Area, 11 rode sportbikes. Gixxers were most common statewide, but in the Bay Area it was the R1/R6.
The median age of runners killed (half younger, half older) was 29 in both California and the Bay Area, compared to 38 for all motorcycle deaths in the same period.
Only one of the bikes involved in these 51 California crashes was stolen, and it was in the Bay Area. But just 33% of the riders were on motorcycles registered to them. The rest were on bikes owned by someone else or were unregistered. The proportions were similar in the Bay Area. For comparison, in all California motorcycle deaths 2005-2010, 70% of riders were on their own bikes.
The influence of alcohol and lack of proper license were common factors among these riders. Nearly half of the California runners who died tested at .01+ BAC, all but a few above .08. Fewer Bay Area runners were drunk: 4 of 14, or 29%. Among all riders killed in California 2005-2010, 26% were at .01+.
In the 51 California pursuit deaths, 45% of riders had a suspended or revoked driver's license or simply had no license, and 25% had a valid driver's license but lacked an M endorsement. So 70% weren't properly licensed (57% in the Bay Area) while 33% of all riders killed in California 2005-2010 lacked a proper license.
Only 3 of the 51 runners killed, 6%, were both sober (BAC .00) and properly licensed, compared to 38% of all riders killed 2005-2010.
This chart illustrates these factors: