James Cody Skene Arrested For DUI After Scooter Collision Kills 91-Year-Old Man In Venice
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — Police arrested a man Saturday night for driving an electric scooter under the influence after a collision that killed a man in Venice.
Investigators said the rider and a female passenger doubled up on the one-person scooter and crashed into a man who was walking at about 9:20 p.m. near the corner of Marco Court and Lincoln Boulevard. The LAPD identified the rider as 29-year-old James Cody Skene.
The collision, police said, caused the pedestrian to hit his head on the sidewalk. He was pronounced dead at the scene, and the Los Angeles County Coroner's Office identified him Tuesday as 91-year-old Yin Wu.
"That's really upsetting, honestly, that makes me really said," Jessica Sepic told CBSLA's Laurie Perez.
Sidewalks around Marco Court and Lincoln Boulevard are littered with electric scooters, proof of how much they're used in the area. California law requires electric scooters be ridden by one person only and not on sidewalks.
Sepic says she was severely injured after being hit and knocked out by an electric scooter as she and her boyfriend were crossing Venice to the Santa Monica bike path just a few weeks ago.
"I had surgery on my jaw. It was fractured in three places and then they also put my teeth in place. They were dislocated. So, they're currently being held in my mouth by surgical braces," Sepic said.
According to the couple, the man who hit her initially stopped, but then took off. They were able to get a picture of him that they have since turned over to police.
Both said they enjoy scooters too, but want more regulation of how they're used so that scooters aren't on the boardwalk or sidewalks and are under control.
"Zig-zagging around a bunch of pedestrians going 20 miles per hour and you're traveling on a metal object at that sort of speed, that is dangerous," Mudd told CBSLA. "People are dying now. The city needs to do something about it and recognize that this is a serious issue and people are getting hurt."