A man pleaded guilty Tuesday to voluntary manslaughter in the death of a cyclist who was an outspoken advocate for bike safety.
David Salovesh was following the flow of traffic on April 19 when police said 25-year-old Robert Earl Little Jr. sped through a red light in a stolen van and struck Salovesh on Florida Avenue NE near Benning Road.
Salovesh died at the scene. He was 54.
Little was arrested and charged with unauthorized use of a vehicle and second-degree murder.
On Tuesday, he pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of voluntary manslaughter, according to court records.
"He really reached a lot of people," friend Rudi Riet previously said. "My day stopped when I heard of his death yesterday, but the reason I'm going today is because there's such an uplift of support."
A white-painted ghost bike was placed near the crash scene in Salovesh's memory. In May, a speeding Chevy Tahoe crashed into the ghost bike.
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D.C. Councilmember Charles Allen said on Twitter that Salovesh was "a leader, an advocate, & someone that always pushed us to do better & do more."
News4 spoke to Salovesh in 2016 about biking in Washington, saying that a better understanding is needed between cyclists and drivers.
"It has become a thing where people have each other in their sights and it's cars versus bikes and bikes versus cars. It's all people trying to get to and from work, to and from places they go," Salovesh said.
Little's sentencing is scheduled for September 27.
