Officer's Dream Dies In Accident -- He Had Just Been Accepted Into Unit

When Richard Cochran first applied for the King County police motorcycle unit, he wrote an application that showed how much he wanted the job.

"I have an excellent driving record and three years of experience," he wrote. "I have a lot of enthusiasm for the job . . . and would accept any kind of assignment in the unit."

Yesterday, a week after his dream came true, Cochran was fatally injured while riding one of his favorite motorcycles, a Kawasaki 1000, on Interstate 5 near Northgate.

The 31-year-old Bothell man died after his motorcycle was pinned between a Community Transit bus and a van in a rush-hour accident that tied up the southbound lanes for hours yesterday morning. He died from massive liver injuries at 9:36 a.m. at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle while undergoing surgery.

A second officer, Zsolt Dornay, who was riding his cycle along with Cochran, was not injured. Four other people, two men and two women, were also sent to the hospital. All were treated and released.

So far, an investigation has shown that Cochran's motorcycle was struck twice.

The State Patrol gave the following account of the accident:

About 7:15 a.m. a white van driven by Daniel Anable, 27, of Lynnwood, was southbound on the interstate when it braked. The vehicle veered to the left, crossed the car-pool lane, then struck the guardrail.

A flatbed truck driven by Ronald Stjern, 42, of Snohomish, was in the car-pool lane at the time and it collided with the van as the van veered back into other lanes of traffic.

When that accident occurred, another van behind the flatbed stopped or slowed down. That van was driven by Priscilla Sink, 36, of Edmonds. The two police motorcyclists slowed down or stopped behind Sink's van in the car-pool lane. At the time, the officers were next to each other with Dornay on the left, closest to the guardrail.

Behind them in the car-pool lane was a Community Transit bus. As the bus moved towards the motorcyclists, Dornay moved to the left and hit the guardrail. The bus missed him but struck Cochran, who was pushed into the rear of Sink's van. As the bus continued, Cochran and his motorcycle were crushed between the bus and Anable's van when Anable apparently veered left again, back towards the car-pool lane.

Cochran had been training for the King County police motorcycle traffic unit after his recent acceptance into the unit.

"He was an avid motorcycle rider," county police spokesman Tony Burtt said. "He was finally able to get a position . . . and now this."

The seven-year veteran had been trying for an assignment on the motorcycle unit since 1985, shortly after he became a King County officer. He was a member of the Oregon-Washington Motor Officers Association and had taken several motorcycle training seminars.

He rode his own motorcycle often and was experienced on the large bikes used by officers.

Members of Cochran's family were not available for comment. Survivors include his wife, Sedonia, a 911 police dispatcher for the county.

News of his death moved fast through the tightly knit police community.

Fellow police officers described Cochran, known as Richie, as friendly, well-liked and a hard worker. They said he was especially eager for an assignment to a police motorcycle after having ridden his own for 10 years.

His dedication earned him a department commendation in 1987, when he saved the life of a Richmond Beach man who was having a heart attack. Cochran, who had worked as an emergency medical technician from 1980 to 1983, performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation on the man, Burtt said.

"We're just sitting around here in shock," said Lt. Harold Hansen of the county's North Precinct in Kenmore, where Cochran was assigned. "It's a helpless feeling."

Hansen said Cochran started his motorcycle training Monday after passing a battery of riding tests. He was the only officer selected from the North Precinct to take the training.

Cochran "was one of our top candidates," according to Capt. Rebecca Norton, who supervises the special-operations section.

Cochran was headed to a new police academy on First Avenue South in Burien with Dornay, a motorcycle officer in the North Precinct, when the accident occurred.

Moving to the motorcycle unit was to be a lateral move for Cochran, but officers are paid more because riding a motorcycle is considered hazardous duty.

"You have to be so defensive," said Burtt, who noted the assignment was coveted by officers.

"A lot of people apply, and there's a fairly low turnover," he said.

-- Times staff reporter Tomas Guillen contributed to this report.