It appears torrin arnold was lying:
A felony hit-and-run case against a San Anselmo man was abruptly dismissed Thursday after a judge learned a doctor concluded the victim was feigning blindness.
The courtroom of Judge Terrence Boren burst into applause following the dramatic turn of events in the case against motorist James Arrigoni, accused of colliding with a bicyclist who claimed he went blind following the incident.
Arrigoni, 45, was charged in the criminal case following an incident on Feb. 26, 2005, when a bicyclist crossed lanes in front of him merging toward a median to make a left-hand turn on Red Hill Avenue in San Anselmo.
The bicyclist, Torrin Danger Arnold, 26, of San Anselmo, claimed Arrigoni swerved his truck to intentionally hit him in a state of road rage. Arnold testified he was struck by Arrigoni's pick-up truck, fell from his bicycle, hit his head on the pavement and later lost his vision.
Witnesses said they saw Arnold signal his move to the left and saw the cyclist "flip off" Arrigoni when he did not appear to slow down sufficiently. They said they saw Arrigoni's Silverado swerve toward Arnold but could not tell whether the truck struck the bicyclist.
But prosecutor Paul Haakenson told the judge the district attorney's office decided to drop the case based on information that came to light after Arnold was on the witness stand.
Haakenson said his office subpoenaed records from a University of California San Francisco Medical Center opthamologist who examined Arnold and concluded he was pretending to be blind.
Defense attorney Jim Collins, calling the turn of events unique in his 30 years practicing law, questioned Arnold in a February preliminary hearing about an examination by the UCSF doctor, who was not fully identified.
Arnold testified then that he had gone to the doctor but experienced a "psychotic" episode when he reached the office and could not proceed with the appointment.
But Collins subpoenaed the doctor's records and found he had indeed examined Arnold - and determined that he was faking blindness. The medical records indicated Arnold did not have the neurological symptoms associated with vision impairment, Collins said.
When Boren ruled in favor of the district attorney's motion to end the proceedings, Arrigoni's supporters - including his father, Peter, a former county supervisor - erupted with cheers and poured out of the courtroom to congratulate a jubilant Arrigoni.
"I'm extremely happy," James Arrigoni said, noting he still faces a civil suit filed by Arnold. "Hopefully the civil suit gets dropped and that's the next goal - after that we'll see what transpires."
Defense attorney Collins said prosecutors apparently had decided against proceeding with the case based just on felony hit-and-run charges because Arnold had not been truthful on the stand.
"The DA, acting professionally and ethically, realized he had lied," Collins said. "I think it's sad that Mr. Arnold in faking his blindness has not only gotten compensation from the state, but he also fooled the bicycle coalition, who supported him," Collins added.
"The most outrageous thing to me is there is a blind person out there without a guide dog," he added, noting Arnold received training and was given a dog by Guide Dogs for the Blind in San Rafael. Arnold also attended Braille school and other classes for the visually impaired.
Arnold, who did not attend the hearing, said later he was aware of the ruling. "The people around me know the truth and that's what's important to me," Arnold said.
District Attorney Ed Berberian said the evidence in the case turned out to be materially different than what his office expected. Berberian said prosecutors met with Arnold Wednesday to relay the news.
"At the end of the meeting he understood," Berberian said.
Berberian said he could not comment on the medical evidence on which his decision was made.
Eric Anderson of the Marin County Bicycle Coalition said the case is not typical.
"We hope that the outcome of this case doesn't distract from the real message that bicycles and cars need to share the road," Anderson said. "We also hope that people understand that no matter how much people provoke you, it's not OK to drive aggressively because people can be hurt or killed."
In May, bicycle activists sponsored a benefit for Arnold in Fairfax to raise money to help him pay medical bills. Arnold and friends established a Web site called "offtheback.org" to raise money for cyclists who were injured on the road.
Arnold's supporters gathered at the Marin County Civic Center in May to deliver letters to the district attorney, urging him to file criminal charges against Arrigoni. They believed the office was considering misdemeanor charges at the time.
Attorney Bill Weiss, who represents Arnold in the civil lawsuit against Arrigoni, said he intends to pursue it despite the dismissal of the criminal case. "It doesn't affect the civil case," Weiss said.
"There were two witnesses that chased him down," Weiss said. "He knocked him over."
"When people who are victims of crime get involved in the criminal system they find they are not protected," Weiss said. "He didn't do anything wrong."
Arnold has a history of angry conflicts with motorists, including a 2004 obscenity-laden run-in with a sanitary district truck in San Anselmo. Another incident in Fairfax that same year led to vandalism charges being filed against Arnold but later dropped in court.
Arnold boasted about his aggressive riding on the Internet and claimed to be riding "brakeless," but later said his writing had been fiction that he was quite proud of.
A jubilant Arrigoni left the courtroom with an entourage for a celebratory lunch at Le Chalet Basque after the hearing.
