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Why is Cody Hall so Special?

Original post made by cyclist too, Another Pleasanton neighborhood, on Jul 31, 2013

The PW seems to be editing out many comments about Cody Hall and his reckless driving that led to the needless death of a cyclist. Has Cody's lawyer gotten to the PW or do Jeb and Gina feel so strongly that this reckless driver just made a youthful mistake?

I can understand editing out comments about some social events that he is accused of attending, although if a writer personally observed him drinking at a party, is that really unfounded?

The comments on this forum, and others in town, lean toward wanting to punish him for his actions as this was NOT a one time event where he just happened to be speeding. Per the police report he was driving at 83 MPH on Foothill, he attempted to use a turn lane to illegally pass, he hit the cyclist so hard that his car was not able to be driven and he refused to cooperate with the investigation by making a statement. What about any of that says "youthful mistake?"

Another poster, Claudette McDermott, states "In a second it could be You in the same spot that this 18 year old is in". Not in this lifetime Claudette! This 18 yr old killed an innocent cyclist because that is how he lives his life. I do not drive at more than double the speed limit -- on a regular basis, and post photos to document it -- I do not illegally pass in a turn lane, I do not recklessly endanger the lives of innocent people. No responsible person that I have ever met could possibly be in the same position as Cody Hall because we simply do not do those reckless things.

For that he needs to be soundly punished and removed from the streets for a very long time. Remorse for that kid? I think not. The only lasting effects he will likely feel are hatred toward the judge and jurors who might take away his personal freedom for a while. After all, he sees himself as a victim who simply made a "youthful mistake".

Comments (8)

Posted by Gina Channell-Allen
president of the Pleasanton Weekly
on Jul 31, 2013 at 11:14 am

Gina Channell-Allen is a registered user.

We have edited out comments that are inappropriate, speculative and unverified. And we will continue to do so.


Posted by Regular Joe
a resident of Downtown
on Jul 31, 2013 at 11:26 am

In my opinion there seems to be an excessive amount of verbal "piling on". I don't know Cody nor do I condone any of his behavior or actions but it seems quite speculative or you to know whether he is remorseful or not. Do you know him?


Posted by Sam
a resident of Oak Hill
on Jul 31, 2013 at 12:32 pm

I don't know if he is genuinely remorseful or not, but I do know that he's had multiple chances to straighten out his behavior. This isn't something that happened totally out of the blue. According to his own social media boasts, he has had a history of outrageous speeding on Foothill road as well as on the highways. So it baffles me as to why anyone would think that he deserves any sympathy when the inevitable happens.

I live on the west side of Pleasanton and our family frequently travels along Foothill road. I've never been passed by an outrageous speeder on it, but if I were driving down Foothill road at the speed limit (40 mph at that section) I would be pretty upset if someone zoomed by me passing at 85 mph over the double-yellow lines of the road, and I bet you would be, too. That's insanely dangerous behavior and shows total contempt for the rules of the road as well as for the lives of everyone else on the road.


Posted by cyclist too
a resident of Another Pleasanton neighborhood
on Jul 31, 2013 at 12:43 pm

I agree that unverified statements, posted as "facts", should be edited. A simple outpouring of anger toward this recklessly irresponsible family is nothing more than a personal statement. If you have deleted threats, if any were made, that would also be appropriate.

RJ -- Seems to be hard to pile on too much considering that this kid bragged about his speeding and subsequently killed someone while doing it. His FB and Twitter posts are a matter of public record and were part of the investigation.

I do happen to be familiar with that family. To say that Cody has felt the slightest bit of remorse would be absolutely false. His attitude is one of rebellion not contrition. Wouldn't you think that after a person drives in that manner, and steals the life of an innocent victim, there might be a little less of the bragging and attitude that he has displayed? Some people say that he will carry this with him for life. I would expand on exactly what he will carry. He sees himself as a victim, "forced" to pass the slow car and "forced" to hit the cyclist who he said "should not have been there". He will forever carry his anger that he might be forced to accept responsibility for his horrific crime. He will carry his anger at those of us who judge him to be unworthy of driving these streets. He will carry no remorse, it is simply not a part of his thinking. A shrink would probably label a person who shows no remorse for causing a needless death as a sociopath. I would agree.


Posted by Sam
a resident of Oak Hill
on Jul 31, 2013 at 1:23 pm

Interesting observations, "cyclist too". I've known and met a lot of people in my life, and I do know that some people are just "different". Some posters here have tried to make the argument that we should sympathize with the driver because he is just like any of us were when we were 18, but that's just not true at all. From what has been revealed thus far about the accident and the driver, this driver is definitely a "unique" individual.


Posted by Joe
a resident of Another Pleasanton neighborhood
on Jul 31, 2013 at 1:46 pm

There is a parallel here. A 17-year old driver named David Rosen was speeding down Treat Bl in Concord in 2012 when he lost control of the car, flipped it, and killed a father and daughter on bikes in the process. Witnesses said he was trying to beat a yellow light. He pled guilty and was sentenced to seven years and eight months in prison.

As part of the plea agreement, pending charges against the driver for alcohol and weapons possession were dropped.

Prior to the accident, David Rosen identified himself on various social media sites as "Race Fox."

As a further injustice to the family of the dead father and daughter, the Cadillac Escalade that David was driving was registered to his father, and he insurance had been allowed to expire. Under CA law, the maximum that a surviving family can gain under these circumstances is $30,000. The survivors had to move to a small apartment.


Posted by Cholo
a resident of Livermore
on Jul 31, 2013 at 2:14 pm

Let cooler heads prevail...that's me!


Posted by liberalism is a disease
a resident of Birdland
on Jul 31, 2013 at 6:03 pm

liberalism is a disease is a registered user.

The only way to prevent this type of accident from occurring again is to prevent bikers from using Foothill Road as their exercise routine.
Since you can't guarantee the behavior or actions of drivers under various circumstances, you must remove the exteraneous traffic on two wheels. This is the only way to guarantee bikers will not be run over on a narrow country road.


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