A 16 year-old Boise boy will face a criminal charge of vehicular manslaughter for his actions that are alleged to have caused the death of Kevin Pavlis. Kevin worked at Idaho Mountain Touring and was well known in the bicycle community. His death – just a day before Boise’s Ironman 70.3 race – left his young wife and child without a husband and father. The sadness at his loss affected those who knew Kevin and many who did not. And the tragedy started a dialog about providing safe passage in Boise for bicyclists.
The criminal courts may not be the best place to handle cases like this, but this young man will have his fate decided in Juvenile court. He should not and will not be treated like an adult. Kevin is gone, and nothing done in Juvenile Court will bring him back. Likely nothing about the criminal case will make Kevin’s family feel better either. Maybe though, some other 16 year-old kid will look a little closer before making that turn, and save a life.