A car struck a woman on a bicycle in an apparent hit-and-run near Fisherman’s Wharf Thursday evening.
A Standard reporter witnessed the crash just after 6:30 p.m. near Taylor and Beach streets. The driver ditched the vehicle and jumped into a second car that sped away. Another person then jumped into the vehicle that struck the bicyclist and fled the scene.
A police cruiser was seen immediately pursuing the car that hit the cyclist. A dozen people watched as the vehicle drove over the crumpled bicycle while fleeing the scene.
The cyclist appeared to have lost most of her front teeth. Blood pooled in the street next to her head. A tooth was visible on the roadway. As paramedics helped the woman into an ambulance, another person held her hand.
The cyclist has since been identified as Reese Forgey. A GoFundMe has been started to help pay for her oral surgery.
San Francisco Fire Capt. Justin Schorr told The Standard the department received multiple calls about the collision starting at 6:34 p.m. Schorr said the ambulance transported the victim to San Francisco General Hospital. He did not have information about her condition.
A police spokesperson said the victim’s injuries were not life-threatening. They added that shortly after SFPD began pursuing the suspect car, it crashed.
“Officers observed the suspect vehicle lose control of their vehicle on the MUNI tracks and collide into a business on the 1800 block of Montgomery Street,” the spokesperson said via email.
After crashing, the woman driving the car jumped out and tried to escape on foot. Officers developed probable cause to arrest Elizabeth Christina James, 32, on suspicion of recklessly evading a police officer, hit and run, resisting arrest, conspiracy to commit a felony, speeding, and driving with a suspended driver’s license.
The other two suspects are still at large.