Re: CHAOS ON THE WEST SIDE HIGHWAY: Wild pack of motorcycling madmen chase family in
Family in SUV issues statement in New York City biker road rage incident
The frightening incident was recorded on a helmet camera and went viral.
Here is the full text of the statement, which appears to have been written by Alexian Lien's wife:
" Our plan last Sunday was to celebrate our wedding anniversary by having a nice family day out with our two-year-old daughter. Unfortunately, instead, we were placed in grave danger by a mob of reckless and violent motorcyclists.
"Our sympathies go out to the injured motorcyclist and his family. However, we were faced with a life-threatening situation, and my husband was forced under the circumstances to take the actions that he did in order to protect the lives of our entire family. Our fear for our lives was confirmed when the incident ended with the ruthless and brutal attack on my husband, me, and, most importantly, our two-year-old child. We know in our hearts that we could not have done anything differently, and we believe that anyone faced with this sort of grave danger would have taken the same course of action in order to protect their family.
" We would like to thank the brave citizens who risked their own safety to intervene on our behalf. They truly helped save our lives and prevented my husband from suffering further injury. We also appreciate and are moved by the outpouring of love and support so many have expressed here in New York and around the country.
" We would ask that the public and the media to respect our privacy at this difficult time and allow my husband to recover from his injuries. From here on forward we would ask that any further inquiries regarding this unfortunate incident be directed to our lawyers Nicholas J. Massimo and Frank C. Panetta."
NEW YORK (WABC) -- The NYPD has released new photos in the search for a biker who used his helmet to smash the window of an SUV before a brutal assault that followed a frightening clash between a group of motorcycle riders and the driver of the SUV on the Henry Hudson Parkway.
Investigators also released photos of two witnesses with whom they would like to interview. CLICK HERE TO SEE THE PHOTOS.
Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477).
Meanwhile, biker Edwin Mieses, whose relatives say was just trying to help a fellow biker, may be paralyzed for life and could lose his leg.
Friends and family gathered Wednesday night at St. Luke's Hospital, where the 32-year-old Mieses remains in a medically-induced coma.
"An accident is an accident," witness Jerome Davis said. "If something happens, you stop right there. It's an accident. You think and stop. You don't keep reacting on."
The story began with the now-viral video that was posted on YouTube, which shows the group of dozens of bikers swarming the highway and surrounding the black SUV, driven by Alexian Lien.
The Lien family released a statement about the incident Thursday morning, in which they expressed sympathy for Mieses but said they were placed in grave danger.
CLICK HERE for the full text of the statement
On the video, biker Christopher Cruz is seen pulling in front of the SUV and slowing down, and he gets bumped from behind.
That set off the chain of events that ended with Lien being beaten in front of his wife and 2-year-old daughter, after he ran over Mieses while desperately trying to get away from the bikers.
Authorities confirm that detectives went the Bellport, Suffolk County, home of the 37-year-old motorcyclist who shot the video. They recovered a GoPro helmet camera, two laptop computers, a cell phone and a digital camera, which they will scour for any potential new evidence that was not posted.
Mieses wife, Dayana, says her husband was just trying to help Cruz after the initial accident, and now he may never walk again. Supporters are calling for Lien to be charged.
"A man got ran over," said Jose, who attended the rally. "A man got paralyzed. He's in this hospital. He's in a coma. It wasn't because he was trying to hurt anybody. It wasn't because he's an evil person. It was because he tried to extinguish a situation that could have got worse, and did become worse."
Organizers collected money for Mieses' family, and they hoped to spread the message that biker clubs are not gangs.
Cruz was arraigned Wednesday on charges of reckless driving and unlawful imprisonment. His attorney, H. Benjamin Perez, said his client denied all the allegations.
"He will come back to fight this case and clear his name," he said.
Prosecutors served notice that they intend to take the case against Cruz to a grand jury, a sign that more serious charges are likely.
A second suspect, Allen Edwards, 42, of Jamaica, Queens, surrendered to police at the 33rd Precinct Tuesday night. It is believed he is the man who punched the rear window of the SUV with his fists at the end of the video.
He had been held and questioned overnight Tuesday, and police initially said he would be charged with reckless endangerment, criminal mischief and menacing. But the office declined to prosecute at this time, pending further investigation of the entire incident.
Anyone with information regarding the incident is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477).
Family in SUV issues statement in New York City biker road rage incident
NEW YORK (WABC) -- The Lien family, who was traveling in the SUV that ran over a motorcyclist on the Henry Hudson Parkway before a frightening chase and beating, released a statement through their lawyer Thursday morning.<object id="otvPlayer" width="400" height="268"><param name="movie" value="http://cdn.abclocal.go.com/static/flash/embeddedPlayer/swf/otvEmLoader.swf?version=fw1000&station=wabc§ion=&mediaId=9272468&parentId=9272241&cdnRoot=http://cdn.abclocal.go.com&webRoot=http://abclocal.go.com&configPath=/util/&site=" ></param><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"></param><param name="allowNetworking" value="all"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed id="otvPlayer" width="400" height="268" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allownetworking="all" allowfullscreen="true" src="http://cdn.abclocal.go.com/static/flash/embeddedPlayer/swf/otvEmLoader.swf?version=fw1000&station=wabc§ion=&mediaId=9272468&parentId=9272241&cdnRoot=http://cdn.abclocal.go.com&webRoot=http://abclocal.go.com&configPath=/util/&site="></embed></object>
The frightening incident was recorded on a helmet camera and went viral.
Here is the full text of the statement, which appears to have been written by Alexian Lien's wife:
" Our plan last Sunday was to celebrate our wedding anniversary by having a nice family day out with our two-year-old daughter. Unfortunately, instead, we were placed in grave danger by a mob of reckless and violent motorcyclists.
"Our sympathies go out to the injured motorcyclist and his family. However, we were faced with a life-threatening situation, and my husband was forced under the circumstances to take the actions that he did in order to protect the lives of our entire family. Our fear for our lives was confirmed when the incident ended with the ruthless and brutal attack on my husband, me, and, most importantly, our two-year-old child. We know in our hearts that we could not have done anything differently, and we believe that anyone faced with this sort of grave danger would have taken the same course of action in order to protect their family.
" We would like to thank the brave citizens who risked their own safety to intervene on our behalf. They truly helped save our lives and prevented my husband from suffering further injury. We also appreciate and are moved by the outpouring of love and support so many have expressed here in New York and around the country.
" We would ask that the public and the media to respect our privacy at this difficult time and allow my husband to recover from his injuries. From here on forward we would ask that any further inquiries regarding this unfortunate incident be directed to our lawyers Nicholas J. Massimo and Frank C. Panetta."
NEW YORK (WABC) -- The NYPD has released new photos in the search for a biker who used his helmet to smash the window of an SUV before a brutal assault that followed a frightening clash between a group of motorcycle riders and the driver of the SUV on the Henry Hudson Parkway.
Investigators also released photos of two witnesses with whom they would like to interview. CLICK HERE TO SEE THE PHOTOS.

Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477).
Meanwhile, biker Edwin Mieses, whose relatives say was just trying to help a fellow biker, may be paralyzed for life and could lose his leg.
Friends and family gathered Wednesday night at St. Luke's Hospital, where the 32-year-old Mieses remains in a medically-induced coma.
"An accident is an accident," witness Jerome Davis said. "If something happens, you stop right there. It's an accident. You think and stop. You don't keep reacting on."
The story began with the now-viral video that was posted on YouTube, which shows the group of dozens of bikers swarming the highway and surrounding the black SUV, driven by Alexian Lien.
The Lien family released a statement about the incident Thursday morning, in which they expressed sympathy for Mieses but said they were placed in grave danger.
CLICK HERE for the full text of the statement
On the video, biker Christopher Cruz is seen pulling in front of the SUV and slowing down, and he gets bumped from behind.
That set off the chain of events that ended with Lien being beaten in front of his wife and 2-year-old daughter, after he ran over Mieses while desperately trying to get away from the bikers.
Authorities confirm that detectives went the Bellport, Suffolk County, home of the 37-year-old motorcyclist who shot the video. They recovered a GoPro helmet camera, two laptop computers, a cell phone and a digital camera, which they will scour for any potential new evidence that was not posted.
Detectives also interviewed the person who shot the video as part of the continuing investigation. No charges were filed.<object id="otvPlayer" width="400" height="268"><param name="movie" value="http://cdn.abclocal.go.com/static/flash/embeddedPlayer/swf/otvEmLoader.swf?version=fw1000&station=wabc§ion=&mediaId=9273198&parentId=9272043&cdnRoot=http://cdn.abclocal.go.com&webRoot=http://abclocal.go.com&configPath=/util/&site=" ></param><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"></param><param name="allowNetworking" value="all"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed id="otvPlayer" width="400" height="268" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allownetworking="all" allowfullscreen="true" src="http://cdn.abclocal.go.com/static/flash/embeddedPlayer/swf/otvEmLoader.swf?version=fw1000&station=wabc§ion=&mediaId=9273198&parentId=9272043&cdnRoot=http://cdn.abclocal.go.com&webRoot=http://abclocal.go.com&configPath=/util/&site="></embed></object>
Mieses wife, Dayana, says her husband was just trying to help Cruz after the initial accident, and now he may never walk again. Supporters are calling for Lien to be charged.
"A man got ran over," said Jose, who attended the rally. "A man got paralyzed. He's in this hospital. He's in a coma. It wasn't because he was trying to hurt anybody. It wasn't because he's an evil person. It was because he tried to extinguish a situation that could have got worse, and did become worse."
Organizers collected money for Mieses' family, and they hoped to spread the message that biker clubs are not gangs.
Cruz was arraigned Wednesday on charges of reckless driving and unlawful imprisonment. His attorney, H. Benjamin Perez, said his client denied all the allegations.
"He will come back to fight this case and clear his name," he said.
Prosecutors served notice that they intend to take the case against Cruz to a grand jury, a sign that more serious charges are likely.
A second suspect, Allen Edwards, 42, of Jamaica, Queens, surrendered to police at the 33rd Precinct Tuesday night. It is believed he is the man who punched the rear window of the SUV with his fists at the end of the video.
He had been held and questioned overnight Tuesday, and police initially said he would be charged with reckless endangerment, criminal mischief and menacing. But the office declined to prosecute at this time, pending further investigation of the entire incident.
Anyone with information regarding the incident is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477).
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