A panel of six La Crosse County citizens recommended a criminal charge of homicide by negligent use of a motor vehicle against a driver who ran a stop sign and struck Tarianna Thompson, killing her, in May, but the district attorney has not decided whether to take that recommendation.
The recommended charge would be a class E felony, punishable by up to 15 years in prison, a $50,000 fine, or both.
As we reported last week, witnesses and video reviewed by Madison365 indicate Richard Myron, 61, did not slow down or stop at a stop sign at the corner of Saint Cloud and Avon Streets in La Crosse. His pickup truck struck Thompson as she crossed Saint Cloud Street on a rented e-bike on May 18. She underwent numerous surgeries but died nine days later.
District Attorney Tim Gruenke empaneled a homicide inquest, a rarely-used proceeding to advise on whether enough evidence exists to file criminal charges. The inquest consists of six citizens who hear evidence and decide whether probable cause exists to prosecute. They do not find guilt or innocence, only whether charges are warranted. Their finding is advisory, and Gruenke could still decide not to file charges. He told Madison365 that he had not decided one way or the other as of Tuesday morning.
In an email Tuesday morning, Gruenke wrote, “I don’t have a timeline, I have to take the advice and consider it.”
Last week Gruenke told Madison365 that an inquest like this one is useful when the law contains words like “negligent” and “reasonable,” which can be subject to interpretation.
Thompson’s family feels charges are long overdue.
“The day my daughter passed away, he should have been locked up and charged that day,” Terrance Thompson, Tarianna’s father, told Madison365 last week.
“An outgoing person”
Tarianna Thompson was mother to a one-year-old girl, and had recently embarked on “a health journey.” She made videos featuring herself and her baby on TikTok, often chronicling her commitment to health, wellness and exercise.
“She was an outdoors person. Loved nature,” Terrance Thompson said. “Loved spending time with her daughter, making TikTok videos … She loved going to a park. She loved watching the eagles and stuff like that. She was just an outgoing person.”
He said it was unusual for her to ride a bike, but she was up for something new. She posted on social media that she was renting an e-bike, and that followers should give her a honk on their car horns for motivation if they saw her biking around LaCrosse’s North Side that day.
“She usually goes to the gym that’s in the apartment building where she stayed. But that day she decided to ride a bike, and she hasn’t ridden a bike since she was like 14 or 15 years old,” Terrance Thompson said. “So the day she decided to ride a bike, she rode to the North Side, and my daughter never made it home.”
The Thompson family has opened an online fundraiser to help defray medical costs, legal costs and to support Tarianna Thompson’s daughter. The fundraiser, on the fundraising site GoFundMe, has raised nearly $9,000.
Madison365 will continue to follow the case and update this story with any additional information.
