Assistant district attorney, 35, killed after a bus struck her while cycling in Brooklyn remembered as an 'extraordinary person'
A prosecutor working for the Brooklyn District Attorney's office was killed Monday morning after being hit by a charter bus while she rode her bike.
Sarah Pitts, 35, was traveling through Williamsburg on Wythe Avenue at around 12.35am when she was struck.
The senior assistant district attorney was rushed to Bellevue Hospital with severe head trauma but could not be saved.
Pitts has been described as a 'light' and an 'extraordinary person' by her friends and co-workers.
'Our office is devastated by and mourning the tragic death of Assistant District Attorney Sarah Pitts,' Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said in a statement.
'She was a brilliant and compassionate lawyer dedicated to seeking justice. We are overwhelmed by this sudden loss.'
Pitts joined the Brooklyn DA's office in 2018 after getting her law degree from the University of Pennsylvania.
In the DA's office, she was assigned to appeals and worked with the Post-Conviction Justice Bureau, where she reviewed parole applications.
'And when the COVID crisis struck, Sarah selflessly volunteered to come into the office to help with urgent matters and to relieve the administrative staff so they would not bear the full burden of the pandemic,' Gonzalez added.
'She was a kind and generous worker who will be greatly missed.'
Pitts was rushed to the hospital after being knocked from her bike but could not be saved
The driver of the chartered bus has not been charged
Pitts has been described as a 'light' and an 'extraordinary person' by her co-workers
Gonzalez's former general counsel, Tali Farhadian Weinstein, told New York Daily News that Pitts had joined the DA's office because she believed strongly in bringing progressive values to the criminal justice system.
'Honestly, she was really a light. She was just an extraordinary person,' she said. 'For me, she was the beating heart of the Post-Conviction Justice Bureau.'
Farhadian Weinstein, who worked with Pitts daily, described her as 'dedicated' and told how she had recently visited a parole applicant in prison and spent the day with him to find out if he merited early release.
'That was just the kind of thing she would do,' she added.
Pitts' brother James shared the news of her death on Facebook describing her as a 'great sister'.
'I am so proud of everything she did and accomplished,' he wrote.
The bus that hit Pitts was chartered and belonged to Excellent Bus Service.
The driver stayed on the scene.
According to New York Daily News, he had a valid licence and there was no alcohol in his system.
He has not been charged and an investigation is ongoing.
Pitts' death marked the end of a dangerous weekend for cyclists in New York City.
On Friday, a hit and run driver struck a cyclist in the Bronx, leaving them unconscious in hospital with serious injuries.
The 25-year-old cyclist was hit by a white sedan and left with a 'possible broken leg and arm'.
On Saturday, a 25-year-old man on an electric bike died after he struck a 46-year-old pedestrian, who suffered shoulder injuries, on the Willis Avenue Bridge bike path in the Bronx around 2 a.m, according to NBC New York.
The man was not wearing a helmet and suffered severe head trauma in the fall.
And on Sunday, another hit and run driver left a 22-year-old man in a critical condition in Queens.
They were hit by an SUV at around 8.10am before the vehicle sped off. Cops are still searching for the driver.
According to NYPD statistics, injuries to cyclists have fallen two percent citywide so far this year.
