Charges dropped against Marco man accused of ramming motorcycle with SUV
By CHRIS W. COLBY, cwcolby@naplesnews.com
September 22, 2005
State prosecutors dropped the charges Wednesday against a Marco Island man arrested last year after deputies said he rammed the back of a motorcycle in front of him at a traffic signal.
Heinz Bock, 58, had faced up to 15 years in prison if convicted of aggravated battery and reckless driving. Instead, Assistant State Attorney Tino Cimato announced Wednesday in Collier County Circuit Court the case is dismissed.
"I was hoping justice would prevail, and it did," Bock's attorney, John S. Winnie, said afterward.
Bock, 10 Anchor Court, had pleaded innocent. Still pending are lawsuits against him by the two people who said they were injured Dec. 20, 2004, when Bock rammed their motorcycle with his sport utility vehicle. Floyd Cunningham III, the driver, and Barbara Valverde, the passenger, filed suit March 22.
According to the police report, Bock repeatedly cut off other drivers, including the motorcycle, on Collier Boulevard. Bock's driving forced Cunningham to veer toward the center median to avoid being hit.
When the vehicles arrived together at the intersection with U.S. 41, Cunningham "informed Heinz that he (Heinz) could have killed him and his passenger," according to the report.
After they drove off, Heinz veered in and out of traffic to cut off Cunningham. Heinz then stopped behind Cunningham at a traffic signal at Collier Boulevard and Business Circle.
"Cunningham stated as soon as the light turned green, Heinz floored it (drove away fast) and ran over the top of his bike, knocking both he and Valverde off the motorcycle," according to the report. When deputies arrived, the motorcycle was trapped underneath the engine of Heinz's SUV, whose front tires were lifted off the ground.
But Bock's attorneys have argued he didn't intentionally ram into Cunningham and Valverde. Winnie said the two, and a third, unidentified motorcycle rider, initiated the confrontation. Bock's SUV made contact with the motorcycle only after Cunningham unexpectedly hit the brakes.
And all Bock did was "tap" the rear tire of the motorcycle, Winnie said. But the motorcycle was caught under the 2004 Porsche Cayenne's cattle guard, making it appear Bock had rammed Cunningham harder than he actually had, Winnie argued.
"The independent witnesses contradicted the alleged victims," Winnie said. "He was arrested without (the deputies) ever talking to either Mr. Bock or Mrs. Bock."
Cimato said he couldn't prove either the aggravated battery or reckless driving counts because several witnesses gave the attorneys different accounts of what happened than they originally told police, Cimato said.
"The victims were consistent and did not want to drop the charges. They have been very involved in this and were very concerned, and were frankly very upset about it," Cimato said.
Sounds like he not only had money for a Porsche Cayenne, but a good lawyer......
Regardless.....don't get into any sort of confrontation with cagers. They can kill you.....
Topic: Road Rager escapes criminal charges/FL (Read 2431 times)