Professor accused of assault Lawyer says she ran him down as
he cycled; she calls it an accident
09:08 PM CDT on Monday, May 3, 2004
By MICHAEL GRABELL / The Dallas Morning News
This is the story of a lawyer on her way to a bike ride who
hit a lawyer riding his bike.
Tommy Thomas, a Dallas business lawyer, came away with
scrapes and bruises but is perplexed about what would drive
a prominent law professor at Southern Methodist University
to run him down in what police say was a road rage incident.
Police arrested Jane Dolkart on Sunday and charged her with
aggravated assault. According to police reports, Mr. Thomas
was cycling with a friend about 10 a.m. on West Lawther Road
when a woman in a Volkswagen Passat came up behind them and
started honking and screaming.
gender, followed the cyclists around a U-turn and then
rammed her car into
Mr. Thomas' bike. Ms. Dolkart, 56, referred questions to her
attorney, who characterized the incident as an accident.
Ed Ishmael, a friend and local real estate title attorney,
said he was surprised by the allegations.
"It doesn't sound anything like the Jane Dolkart I know," he
said. "She's not a hothead."
But Mr. Thomas said he was dragged underneath the car and
suffered road rash and bruising on his arms and shoulders.
"It is the most unbelievable, amazing thing that happened
to me," said Mr. Thomas, 28. "I still can't believe it
happened to me."
Ms. Dolkart's attorney, James Vasilas, said his client was
on her way to go biking at White Rock Lake when she came
across two cyclists moving slowly in the middle of the
road just south of Mockingbird Lane.
"She tapped on her horn one time - she was not honking and
screaming - just to let them know, 'Hey, if you move over a
little, I could get by.' "
He said that when Ms. Dolkart made a U-turn to go into the
parking lot, Mr. Thomas slammed on his brakes and was hit.
"This was obviously blown way out of proportion," Mr.
Vasilas said. "This is not a criminal offense."
Mt. Dolkart was taken to the Dallas County jail and posted a
bond for the $2,500 bail on Sunday night. The Dallas
Police Department is investigating and will refer the
case to a grand jury to determine whether she will be
indicted on assault charges.
Aggravated assault with a deadly weapon is a second-degree
felony punishable by two to 20 years in prison and up to a
$10,000 fine.
The witness "could hear her screaming through the closed
window at him. ... That's how loud she was screaming," said
Detective L.C. Hall of the assault unit. "If it was stress
or if she was late, I have no idea why this incident
occurred."
Mu. Thomas said he and a friend had been waiting for
another friend for their usual ride to Lake Ray
Hubbard and back.
"It sucked the tire underneath the car, and the next thing
you know, I'm underneath the car," he said. "The bike is
absolutely shredded."
Mv. Dolkart has been an associate law professor at SMU for
14 years. Before that she was an assistant general
counsel at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
and taught at Catholic University Law School in
Washington, D.C.
harassment in the workplace and gender discrimination.
SMU officials released a written statement Monday saying the
university takes all allegations of misconduct involving a
member of the school's community seriously, but they did not
comment further because the matter is under investigation.
Mw. Thomas said her position is all the more reason she
should be held accountable.
"You'd think that people who are training our future
attorneys would have better judgment," he said.
Mx. Vasilas said he is confident his client would be
cleared.
"This case isn't going anywhere," he said. "This is not
going to stick."