Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Mother Of SI Cyclist Killed In Hit-And-Run Lashes Out At "Cowardly" Driver
By
John Del Signore
Published Feb 14, 2012
Modified Feb 14, 2012
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
John Del Signore
Published Feb 14, 2012
Modified Feb 14, 2012
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Police are still searching for the driver who fatally struck a Staten Island nursing student as he biked home from Wagner College Sunday night around 9 p.m. Investigators believe 29-year-old Ronald Tillman was killed by the driver of a dark-colored, newer-model SUV or pickup truck, possibly a Dodge Durango. (The front grill is now missing.) Tillman's mother, who lives upstate near Syracuse, tells the Staten Island Advance the driver is "a coward. What a coward. At least give him a little comfort instead of leaving him in pain and letting him die alone. I’m sure it’s somebody who was doing something they weren’t supposed to be doing... Still, fess up, and face the music. That’s despicable."
Tillman had recently moved to Staten Island from Brooklyn, where he had graduated with a film degree from Brooklyn College. But he was changing careers to become a nurse, and his mother says, "Everything was just coming together. He was so happy. He finally found a career he was going to love." His car was stolen when he lived in Brooklyn, so Tillman was commuting by bicycle between his home and the college. In his free time, he volunteered at a local hospital, spending time with elderly patients and keeping them company.
“His mother’s just heartbroken that he died alone and nobody stopped to see if he was okay or not," Tillman's distraught aunt, Joan Snihur, tells the Daily News, adding that she'll miss Tillman's sense of humor most of all. "He was hysterical. He was great at impersonations. He was always at the table entertaining all his cousins. Identifying the driver's not going to bring him back, but we still can’t understand how somebody could do that."
Anyone with information about the hit-and-run driver is encouraged call Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS (8477); visit nypdcrimestoppers.com or send text tips to CRIMES (274637), then enter TIP577.
Tagged
biking
cyclists
hit and run
ronald tillman
staten island
wagner college
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Inside the plan to fix the nearly collapsed Pfizer Building, 1/64th of an inch at a time
Construction crews will jack up sagging floors where two key structural columns bent in July.
By
David Brand
Published Oct 16, 2026 at 1:54 p.m. ET
School bus carrying autistic students got lost in Brooklyn for 4 hours last year
A city investigation discovered that when the bus arrived at its destination in Crown Heights, one student was lying in a pool of urine.
By
Jessica Gould
News
School bus carrying autistic students got lost in Brooklyn for 4 hours last year
A city investigation discovered that when the bus arrived at its destination in Crown Heights, one student was lying in a pool of urine.
By
Jessica Gould
NYC’s bridges can last 'forever,' if we take care of them
By
Clayton Guse
Queens mother charged with murder in death of 5-year-old daughter, NYPD says
By
Ryan Kost
NYC’s whiplash weather continues into weekend with heavy winds, chilly temps, NWS says
By
Monica Melton
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .