On November 28, 2017, 24-year-old Emily Fredricks was riding her bicycle to work as a pastry chef on Spruce and 11th in Philadelphia when she was hit and killed by a private sanitation truck.
Emily was lawfully riding in the bike lane when the driver of the truck turned without yielding or using a turn signal, and was later found to be wearing an earbud and looking at paperwork rather than checking his mirrors at the time of the crash. Even though the driver was initially charged with homicide by vehicle, involuntary manslaughter, and recklessly endangering another human being, those charges were dismissed in August of 2022.
Emily is missed every second of every day by her parents, Rich and Laura, and her brothers, Michael and Jack. Rich and Laura have started a foundation in Emily’s honor (www.emilyfredricksfoundation.org) and are co-founders of Families for Safe Streets Greater Philadelphia. They have also started the Emily Fredricks Bicycle and Pedestrian Memorial Fund in the Outer Banks, through the Outer Banks Community Foundation (https://obcf.org/emily-fredricks-memorial-fund-for-bicycle-and-pedestrian-safety/).