As the 2024-25 school year begins, the university has been shocked by the news that a freshman was struck and killed by a speeding motorcycle on Aug. 27, the first day of classes.
The freshman was identified on Aug. 29 by Newark Police as Noelia Gomez, an 18-year-old resident of Clark, NJ. After being hit by a motorcycle while crossing West Main Street near Trabant University Center and Deer Park Tavern, Gomez was pronounced dead at the scene.
“Bystanders attempted lifesaving measures on the pedestrian in the crosswalk,” a statement from Newark Police read. “However, they were unsuccessful.”
The motorcyclist, Newark native Brian Briddle, was taken into custody by police on Aug. 29 and has been jailed after failing to post bond. He has been charged with second-degree murder, possession of a deadly weapon during the commission of a felony, disregarding a police officer’s signal, driving a special vehicle without a special license, operation of an unregistered motor vehicle and three counts of failure to stop at a red light.
Authorities have not confirmed that Briddle was intoxicated at the time of the crash, but witnesses report that he smelled strongly of alcohol. Briddle was too injured after being thrown from his bike to undergo sobriety testing.
Following the crash, which left four additional pedestrians injured, the student body has begun to not only pay tribute to Gomez but also discuss the apparent lack of pedestrian safety on campus.
Senior visual communications major Julianna Bloodwell was inspired to organize a memorial for Gomez near the sidewalk where the fatal crash occurred. The memorial garnered a collection of stuffed animals and flowers, left near a tree in front of the George Evans House.
“I was thinking that if it was my own life or my mother’s life or my sister’s life, I would want to be remembered not for my death but for who I was as a person,” Bloodwell said. “This person is a UD student forever. They were only a UD student for one day, but that’ll make them a part of the family.”
Bloodwell, who did not personally know Gomez, organized the memorial using Yik Yak, a popular anonymous chat app used by many university students.
Throughout the hour and a half that Bloodwell stood by the memorial, participants added to the pile of flowers dedicated to Gomez’s memory.
“I thought it would be great to contribute to this because it’s just so sad,” Charli Tucker, a sophomore psychology major who left a bouquet of flowers, said. “It was her first day of classes. She barely got to experience anything, and I wanted to take that little extra step of saying how sorry I feel for her and her family and friends.”
Passersby were also encouraged to scan a QR code that had been taped to the tree itself, linking to a petition requesting improved pedestrian safety on Main Street.
The petition currently has over 2,000 signatures, having had roughly 250 when the memorial began.
“Many students do not and have not felt safe on campus for a multitude of reasons,” the anonymous organizer of the petition wrote. “However, we believe that it is the responsibility of the city of Newark and the University of Delaware to ensure safety for all students.”
The organizer went on to suggest a myriad of ways in which the university could make Main Street safer for pedestrians, including speed bumps, elevated crosswalks, improvements to the bus system and the implementation of a crossing guard during school hours, when foot traffic at intersections is high.
Currently, there is a UDPD crossing guard to control traffic on Academy Street in front of Perkins Student Center during busy school hours.
Gomez is not the only university student to have died in traffic accidents in recent years. Last September, freshman engineering major Daniel Bacsik was fatally hit by a car while riding his bicycle at the intersection of South College Avenue and West Delaware Avenue.
The driver in the Bacsik crash was confirmed to have been sober.
The latest Zotubi DUI Report named Delaware as the second safest state in the nation for drunk driving incidents.
University students are dedicated to keeping Gomez’s memory alive and pushing for adequate pedestrian safety in busy areas of Newark like Main Street.
“I didn’t know your name, but whoever you were, I hope that we will do you justice for your death because it was completely unfair,” Bloodwell said when asked what she would say to Gomez. “You deserved better. You deserved to graduate, and you deserved to have had more days at school than just the first.”