THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, September 26, 1995 TAG: 9509260297
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TERRI WILLIAMS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: SUFFOLK LENGTH: Long : 112 lines
It was a hot July afternoon. The two elementary-school-age boys were riding a bike, as they often did - Deon Terrell Sheeter pedaling, friend P.L. Chapman on the handlebars.
Their working-class community of uniformly white duplexes and single-family homes, in western downtown, bustled with children at play.
It's the kind of place where kids play games on the sidewalks. Lawrence Grocery Store, at the corner of Market and Pine streets, is a popular spot for youngsters looking to buy candy and soda. Deon, 10, and P.L., 8, had ridden there countless times.
But about 5:20 p.m. on July 21, there was a tragedy that some residents say should never have happened. And the city is acting on their pleas.
A police report says the boys rode down a private drive, near the store, toward Market Street. Deon, trying to go west on Market, apparently didn't see a westbound car, ``due to parked vehicles.'' The front of the car struck the front bicycle tire, and P.L. crashed into the windshield.
Six days later, P.L. died of head injuries. Deon wasn't hurt, and no charges were filed against the driver.
About 150 residents, led by Frances Riddle, have signed a petition to get tougher street restrictions and increased bike-safety instruction in the schools.
P.L.'s mother, Tammy Chapman, who works at the small grocery store, declined comment. Her attorney, Lance Jackson, is considering litigation.
``Generally, the poor neighborhoods don't get as much attention as other neighborhoods,'' Jackson said.
The residents petitioned City Hall to toughen restrictions along Market Street and to enforce them. The city has responded.
Last week, Riddle met with city officials and police, who told her they're working out plans to intensify bike-safety efforts in the schools and are writing traffic-violation citations.
Officials are also considering a mandatory helmet law, said Cynthia D. Rohlf, assistant to City Manager Myles E. Standish. The Virginia Beach City Council passed an ordinance earlier this year requiring bicyclists 14 and younger to wear helmets and authorizing a $25 fine for violators. A proposal to donate helmets to low-income cyclists - a measure recently approved by the Norfolk City Council - is also in the works, said Rohlf.
``The crosswalks will be re-striped. There will be more sign-age,'' said Rohlf. ``We're going to continue to monitor the area and write more citations.''
Police statistics from Jan. 1, 1990, to Sept. 12, 1995, show that 647 traffic offenses were cited on Market Street - five blocks between North Wellons and North Main streets. Speeding, reckless driving and failure to obey signals and signs top the list.
There were 50 accidents - one resulting in a fatality and 22 involving injuries.
Market Street, a two-lane thoroughfare that slices busily through the neighborhood near City Hall, has a litany of problems that make it dangerous, residents said.
There is no school crossing guard on Market. Indeed, there are only two in Suffolk, at Washington Street and White Marsh Road, near Booker T. Washington Elementary School; and at J.F. Kennedy Middle School, on East Washington Street, said Suffolk police spokesman Mike Simpkins.
City officials said the issue of school crossing guards wasn't discussed.
Sharon Jones, who lives on Chestnut Street, said she walks her children to the bus stop every day because she worries that what happened to P.L. could also happen to her children.
``They need to do something about that corner because cars fly by so fast. When the bus stops, even the police don't stop.''
Signs along the street forbid parking in some places, but limited parking is allowed in others. Residents contend that drivers ignore the time limits and that the city should just do away with the parking. City officials say that the street is wide enough to accommodate parking and that the signs will stay.
The residents said they're grateful the city is taking action, but the closely knit neighborhood is still recovering from P.L.'s death.
``This one hit close to home,'' Riddle said. ``I mean, how do you tell your son this? The first day on the bus stop was the hardest because P.L. wasn't there.''
Her two young sons often played with him. Her 7-year-old son, Kenneth, attended Southwestern Elementary with him. And P.L. had dreams of becoming a firefighter like Riddle, a volunteer for the Driver Volunteer Fire Department.
``He was outgoing, smart and always polite,'' Riddle recalled. ``He would be mischievous like most boys, but he would always tell the truth.''
At P.L.'s funeral, a group of neighborhood children sang in his honor. It was ``the most beautiful thing'' she'd ever seen, Riddle said.
As the coffin was taken from the church, Riddle gave an usher her volunteer firefighter tie tack, to be buried with P.L. - ``something I had to give back to P.L.'' ILLUSTRATION: B\W photo
P.L. Chapman shown here in first grade, died of head injuries after
he hit a car winshield in a bike accident.
Staff map
Area Shown
by CNB