Honk News (Tacoma, WA) – A man from Washington state, who was legally blind and an advocate for pedestrian safety, was reportedly killed in a road rage incident. An 18-year-old allegedly exited a vehicle and punched the 63-year-old to the ground, fatally injuring him, after nearly hitting him and his friends as they crossed the street.
A witness from a building six stories high reported hearing the sound of Steven Bird’s head hitting the ground after he was punched by the accused teenager, Naim Hicks, according to charging documents from the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.
“Witnesses report that Steven made no offensive type gestures, nor had he done anything to aggress on the passenger who assaulted him,” prosecutors allege. “One witness observed the assault from six stories up and reported hearing the impact of Steven striking the pavement even from this distance and commented how he appeared vulnerable.”
Prosecutors stated that Bird suffered from “macular degeneration and stargardt’s disease,” which rendered him “legally blind” at the time of his passing. On December 2, 2024, he was walking home from the Logan Brewing Company in Burien with his longtime friends, Lolita O’Donnell and Ken O’Donnell, when they came across Hicks, according to prosecutors.
Prosecutors say Hicks, who was reportedly behind the wheel of an SUV, almost hit Bird and others as they entered a crosswalk.
“They intended to utilize the crosswalk to walk towards Town Square Park,” the charging documents state. “As they were stepping into the crosswalk, Ken and Lolita explained that a white large SUV never slowed down upon reaching the stop sign but drove past the stop sign almost striking them.”
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Prosecutors say witnesses told investigators that Hicks had no lights on. “As the vehicle passed them, Ken took his keys and threw them at the vehicle striking either the back or side of the vehicle,” the charging documents explain. “The vehicle came to a stop in the middle of the westbound lanes … Ken and Lolita both confirmed the passenger [Hicks] jumped out first and aggressed quickly towards them.”
Prosecutors reported a short altercation, where Hicks hit both Bird and Ken O’Donnell in the face before escaping.
“Witnesses describe Steven as not being able to brace himself and falling directly back and striking his head,” the charging documents allege.
A bird was taken to the hospital following an attack and passed away five days later. Hicks faces second-degree murder charges following last week’s arrest. He stayed in custody on Thursday, with bail set at $1 million.
“Steven was the kind of person that always wanted to help, to help make things better, to help people,” Laura Svancarek, Interim Executive Director at Downtown on the Go, told local CBS affiliate KIRO of Bird, who has been a safety and pedestrian advocate for the group since 2016.
“He was just a perfect human being,” said friend Andrea Williams, who reportedly noted how Bird used to say he thought he was going to get hit by a car one day. “Just fabulous.”