Charge laid in Ottawa cyclist death
CBC News
Posted: Oct 25, 2011 4:55 PM ET
Last Updated: Oct 25, 2011 7:41 PM ET
Danielle Naçu, 33, died from her injuries after colliding with the door of a parked car and being knocked into moving traffic. (Facebook)
Ottawa police have laid charges against a 41-year-old Ottawa woman with a traffic violation in the death of cyclist Danielle Naçu.
The woman was charged under the Highway Traffic Act for opening her vehicle door improperly. She struck Naçu, 33, who was cycling to work along Queen Street around 9 a.m. ET on October 11.
The cyclist was pronounced dead at the scene after the car door knocked her into moving traffic.
The violation, which comes with two demerit points and a $110 fine, is listed under Section 165, (a) as:
- No person shall open the door of a motor vehicle on a highway without first taking due precautions to ensure that his or her act will not interfere with the movement of or endanger any other person or vehicle
No criminal charges will be laid
Police say they do not expect criminal charges in this case.
The victim's brother, Brent Naçu, told CBC News the family trusts the decision made by Ottawa police.
"Someone had to be held accountable and whatever happened that day was a violation," he said to reporter Giacomo Panico over the phone from Toronto.
"I guess it's a consolation on some level that what Danielle was doing was in the right."
A ghost bike memorial still sits near where Naçu was killed and it is now hidden behind many bouquets of flowers. Hundreds of cyclists also attended a tribute ride in Naçu's honour October 18, which ran along the downtown road where she died.
Ontario coroner Dr. Dan Cass announced Monday, less than two weeks after Naçu's death, he will investigate an increase in cycling deaths across Ontario during a five-year period from 2006-10.
Share Tools
Latest Ottawa News Headlines
- Kenyan runner sets new Ottawa marathon record
- Kenya's Laban Moiben set a new record Sunday for the Ottawa race weekend marathon with a time of 2:09:12. more »
- Fire causes $2M in damage at banquet centre
- The West Carleton Weddings and Banquets Centre sustained $2 million in damage early Sunday morning following a fire. more »
- Teen struck by lightning in Ottawa dies
- The victim of a Friday lightning strike during a storm in east Ottawa has died, CBC News has learned. more »
- Family, friends honour teen killed in school explosion
- Family and friends paid tribute Saturday to Eric Leighton, the 18-year-old student killed in a shop class explosion one year ago. more »
Top News Headlines
- Canadian Pacific strikers face back-to-work legislation
- Labour Minister Lisa Raitt is prepared to end the Canadian Pacific Railway strike if necessary, after both CP and the union rejected a proposal for voluntary arbitration by the government-appointed negotiator on Sunday. Raitt says she is "extremely disappointed." more »
- Syrian regime denies role in Houla massacre
- The UN Security Council condemned the Syrian regime at an emergency meeting Sunday, holding president Bashar al-Assad's military responsible for the massacre of more than 100 people, dozens of whom were children younger than 10 years old. more »
- Ryder Hesjedal wins prestigious Giro d'Italia
- Victoria native Ryder Hesjedal has become the first Canadian to win one of the cycling world's three Grand Tour events, wrapping up the 2012 Giro d'Italia with an excellent performance in the final stage in Milan. more »
- Neighbour may have helped find missing kids in Mexico
- Two Winnipeg children who had been missing for nearly four years were found in Mexico after a man raised concerns about his neighbour, according to a private investigator. more »
Most Viewed/Commented
- Teen struck by lightning in Ottawa dies
- Kenyan runner sets new Ottawa marathon record
- Para Transpo bus crashes into hydro pole, tree
- Birds attack Ottawa joggers
- Fire causes $2M in damage at banquet centre
- Family, friends honour teen killed in school explosion
- Quebec students, government to resume talks
- 4 arrested during Gatineau protest against Bill 78
- Aylmer triple stabbing leads to first-degree murder charges

