Jordan Schwitzer Injured in Motorcycle Accident on 12th Ave in Fargo, ND
Fargo, ND — June 12, 2022, 33-year-old Jordan Schwitzer was seriously injured when his motorcycle collided with a semi-truck on 12th Avenue in Fargo.
According to reports the incident happened Sunday along 12th Avenue near Interstate 29. Preliminary investigation suggests Schwitzer was riding a motorcycle west on 12th when he lost control and laid the bike down. The pair slid into a nearby bobtail semi-truck that had just turned onto 12th from southbound I-29.
Schwitzer, reportedly not wearing a helmet, suffered severe injuries in the crash.
No further information is available at this time.
Commentary on Jordan Schwitzer Accident on 12th Ave in Fargo
Reports about this accident don't have much in the way of detail aside from saying the victim mysteriously lost control of his motorcycle. It's unclear how or why that occurred, so I hope investigators can provide more details soon. How fast was the motorcycle traveling? Did it have any issues with its tires or engine? How was visibility at the time? Weather? Road conditions? Were both drivers paying full attention to their surroundings? If not, why not? Could any other vehicles have been involved but left the scene afterward? Could the truck driver have taken any evasive action to avoid the oncoming bike?
Those questions aren't meant to overcomplicate the matter or point any fingers. They simply need to be addressed by investigators because without finding out all the facts of the situation some may say the rider was just careless and leave it at that. I've seen too many incidents where investigators and the public didn't give a motorcyclist the benefit of the doubt due to bias against anything without four or more wheels.
Trucking companies are unfortunately happy to oblige those prejudices, often suggesting a victim was speeding or acting recklessly on their bike and gambling that nobody will question that idea. Even law enforcement falls victim to that predisposition sometimes. In fact, I handled a case recently where police grossly misinterpreted a witness's account of a crash and blamed a motorcyclist for hitting an 18-wheeler, only for us to talk to the witness they "quoted" and find out what he said didn't match up at all with what they wrote. We had to set the record straight to make sure the right people were held accountable for that accident.
None of this is meant to say a motorcyclist can't make a mistake; unfortunately there are many examples to the contrary and this might prove to be another. However, that can't be known for certain unless a more careful investigation is conducted. It's a major concern after wrecks like the one above where there's still so much room for assumptions instead of facts. Hopefully appropriate steps are taken to make sure the dots are properly connected.
