A 46-year-old bicyclist was left with serious injuries late Wednesday night after a driver struck him on FM 78 in Converse and fled the scene, before a witness's quick thinking helped police track down the suspect within hours. Converse police officers responded to the crash in the 8600 block of FM 78 around 11:15 p.m., and a nurse who happened upon the scene provided first aid to the victim before Converse Fire and EMS arrived and transported him to a local hospital for treatment.
According to WOAI, a witness saw the vehicle strike the man and then followed it, giving officers the suspect vehicle's location and direction of travel while also snapping a picture of its license plate. That information allowed officers to locate and stop the vehicle in the 9100 block of FM 78. The driver was identified as Jenifer Lynn, who now faces three separate charges: intoxication assault with a vehicle causing serious bodily injury, collision involving injury, and possession of a controlled substance in penalty group 1 under one gram.
Felony Charges Carry Years of Prison Exposure
Each of Lynn's charges carries significant criminal exposure under Texas law. Intoxication assault causing serious bodily injury is a third-degree felony under Texas Penal Code § 49.07, punishable by two to 10 years in state prison and a fine of up to $10,000, according to FindLaw. Leaving the scene of a crash that results in serious bodily injury is likewise a third-degree felony under Texas Transportation Code § 550.021, carrying the same two-to-10-year range and up to a $10,000 fine, FindLaw notes.
The drug possession charge adds a separate layer of exposure. Under Texas Health and Safety Code § 481.115(b), possession of a Penalty Group 1 controlled substance in an amount under one gram is a state jail felony, punishable by 180 days to two years in state jail and a fine up to $10,000, per FindLaw's breakdown of the statute. Police have not disclosed what substance was allegedly found, and the investigation into the crash remains ongoing, the station reports.
A Familiar and Dangerous Stretch of Roadway
This is not the first time this stretch of FM 78 in northeast Bexar County has made headlines for a serious hit-and-run. Just over a week earlier, Hoodline reported that a pedestrian was critically injured crossing FM 78 in the 8000 block, just steps from where a driver fatally struck and fled from 54-year-old Army veteran Joseph Hudson III in the 8100 block back in June. The same Hoodline coverage detailed multi-million dollar TxDOT expansions underway nearby, including a $73 million widening of FM 1518 and a $68 million project on FM 1516 connecting to FM 78, both intended to add continuous turn lanes, sidewalks, and bike paths through 2028.
The pattern extends beyond this single corridor. Just days before the cyclist was struck in Converse, a driver in downtown San Antonio veered onto a sidewalk, hit a 31-year-old man, and fled, a case Hoodline also connected to broader hit-and-run trends across Bexar County. Pedestrian and bicyclist crashes across the eight-county San Antonio metro area have topped 1,000 annually between 2016 and 2025, with Bexar County accounting for 93% of those incidents, according to the same reporting.
Bexar County's Deadly Traffic Record
Bexar County recorded 190 total traffic fatalities in 2025, ranking it the fourth deadliest county for traffic crashes in Texas behind Harris, Dallas, and Tarrant counties. Statewide, the Texas Department of Transportation recorded 2,761 motor vehicle crashes involving bicyclists in 2024 alone, resulting in 79 fatalities and 427 suspected serious injuries, according to the Texas Department of Transportation.
Bicyclists riding on Texas roads have the same legal rights and duties as motor vehicle drivers under Texas Transportation Code § 551.101, according to BikeTexas. State law also requires bicycles ridden at night to carry a front lamp visible from 500 feet and a rear red reflector or light visible up to 300 feet, though whether lighting conditions played any role in Wednesday night's crash has not been addressed by investigators. It also remains unclear whether toxicology testing will confirm impairment, and the 46-year-old victim's current medical condition has not been publicly updated.
