By Laura McWilliams

Grapeland Messenger

ELKHART — A cross marks the location where Brady E. Brooks lost his life in a motorcycle accident on April 3, 2006, while driving to work that morning. The cross, erected by the Texas Motorcycle Rights Association-II (TMRA-II) on Saturday, May 30, not only honors Brooks, but is a reminder to all motorists to be aware of motorcyclists while driving Texas highways this summer.

“The Motorcycle Awareness movement is to let everyone know we’re out there,” TMRA-II representative Bryan Horn said. “The most common excuse a motorist gives after an accident is ‘I didn’t see him.’ They think since we’re on motorcycles, we can just get out the way while they talk on the cell phone or text while driving.”

Jeana Brooks Culp, widow of Brady Brooks, spoke during the dedication ceremony, asking that motorists sharing the road with motorcyclists not judge those who choose to ride on two wheels.

“Brady died at the hands of a negligent driver, but because he was on a ‘crotch rocket,’ it was assumed by officers and media that he was driving recklessly, and I quote, ‘One Dead Body and a Crotch Rocket,’” Culp said. “He wasn’t ‘jolly-riding,’ as quoted in the paper, but was actually trying to avoid an accident when his accident occurred.”

Culp said that because officers quickly judged her husband to be a reckless motorcyclist, no one investigated the accident until they determined he was Brady Brooks, a 30-year-old professional of Jacksonville — the son of Dr. Barry Brooks and husband to a then-member of Rep. Chuck Hopson’s staff — who worked hard to provide for his wife and son, Chase, who was 2-years-old at the time.

“Since this occurred, there have been public apologies, but it was the people I admired most who were so quick to judge Brady,” Culp said. “Brady was a respected man, not because his name was Brady Brooks, but because he was a good man. Many heartaches could have been avoided had the public not quickly judged him.”

TMRA-II President David Barber said most motorcyclists are concerned with their own safety and take precautions to protect themselves.

“The noise is something many drivers complain about, but it’s designed for our safety,” Barber said. “Often, drivers will see right through a motorcycle driving in front of them. For that reason, the pipes are designed to be loud and alert drivers that we’re on the road too.”

Horn said few legal suits are filed on behalf of motorcyclists killed or injured in automobile accidents because people assume the motorcyclist drove recklessly. However, he said many accidents could be avoided if drivers would be more attentive to their driving and their surroundings.

Bikers for Jesus pastor J.W. O’Gorman offered a prayer for Brooks’ surviving family members, and shared another story of public misjudgment, similar to Brooks’.

“An ordained minister was riding his bike with his wife when they were injured in an accident,” O’Gorman said. “The minister died at the scene. The wife survived, but suffered severe injuries, both physically and mentally, not just from the wreck, but from the judgment of those around her and the excuses made for the accident and the driver’s negligence.”

O’Gorman said in that accident the couple’s daughter arrived at the scene and was told by response teams it was “just another motorcycle wreck.’” He said no drug or alcohol testing was performed on the driver of the vehicle, and two weeks later the same driver caused another accident on the same road.

“Inattentive drivers make a lot of excuses,” O’Gorman said. “But none of them is worth a human life.”



Laura McWilliams may be reached via email at McWilliamsMessenger@gmail.com.