Co Founder of the Company That Makes the Oculus Rift Hit By a Car and Killed During Police Chase

[Swift142]

http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=news/local/orange_county&id=9122999

SANTA ANA, Calif. (KABC) -- The pedestrian who was struck and killed during a police chase in Santa Ana was identified Friday as 33-year-old Andrew Scott Reisse. Coworkers described him as a "brilliant mind."

Reisse, a Santa Ana resident, was walking in a crosswalk when he was struck and killed at the end of a police chase Thursday.

Reisse's father, who lives in Virginia, said his son moved to Southern California about a year ago. Reisse co-founded Oculus VR in Irvine, a company known for its virtual reality headsets for immersive gaming.

"Andrew was a brilliant computer graphics engineer, an avid photographer and hiker who loved nature, a true loyal friend, and a founding member of our close-knit Oculus family," the company said in a statement.

A grief counselor was available for coworkers, as they learned of Reisse's death. Some of the coworkers said they have known Reisse since college and have worked with him at multiple companies.

"Andrew's contributions span far and wide in the video game industry. His code is embedded in thousands of games played by millions of people around the world," the statement said. "Words can not express how sorely he will be missed or how deeply our sympathy runs for his family."

Authorities say the incident began when officers saw two vehicles full of people involved in some type of criminal activity in the 1000 block of Rosewood Court Thursday. When officers went to investigate, there was a physical altercation between police and 26-year-old Gerardo Diego Ayala that ended with a fatal officer-involved shooting. Police say a gun was located at the scene.

Investigators allege 21-year-old Victor Sanchez and two other suspects then took off in a Dodge Charger. With Sanchez at the wheel, the Charger slammed into two vehicles during the pursuit before hitting Reisse, police said.

The suspects were taken into custody. Police say all are gang members on probation, with outstanding warrants for their arrest. Sanchez is recovering in the hospital from injuries suffered during the crash. The two other suspects are not yet being identified due to the ongoing investigation.

(Copyright ©2013 KABC-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)

TL;DR

Andrew Scott Reisse, co founder of Oculus VR (which makes the Oculus Rift), got hit by a car and killed during the police chase of a gang related police slaying. It really is a shame that such a tragedy would happen to one of the few companies experimenting with virtual reality, and hopefully his work will help change the gaming industry for the better.

 

[Owyn_Merrilin]

Wow, that's horrible. On way too many levels to go into. Such a shitty way for an engineer doing groundbreaking work to go. Shitty way for anyone to go, really, but the world just got robbed of a lot of cool things.

 

[NightmareExpress]

In short;
An engineer of sorts (soft/hardware?) who has spent a good amount of his time studying, working and paving the way for the future of virtual-reality interface was murdered by a couple of deadbeats who probably dropped out of the first year of high school, haven't worked an honest day in quite a while and have no redeeming personal qualities to speak of.

Fantastic.
It's scary to think of all of that loss that can happen to you in just one afternoon.
The results of your effort, your dedication towards education and innovation...rewarded with being struck down by a speeding car. The Oculus remains interesting and I hope that the results of his work are realized and contribute to when we can make matrix chairs or something similar. May the guy rest in peace, and have not his work be in vain.

 

[xPixelatedx]

Wow this is terrible... though I am wondering how this happened. I mean, if this was just a hit a run or a drunk driving incident, it would be one thing, but why stay on a sidewalk when you hear sirens approaching? No offense intended, god rest his soul... or whatever he believed in, yeah. Just trying to wrap my mind around this.

 

[MeChaNiZ3D]

...those bastards. To think what incalculable damage a few fuckwits in a van managed to do to someone completely unrelated and uninvolved, and by extension the future of gaming. Admittedly, I wouldn't have cared if it were plenty of other people I don't personally know, but this is incredibly bad luck.

 

[Adam Jensen_v1legacy]

In short;
An engineer of sorts (soft/hardware?) who has spent a good amount of his time studying, working and paving the way for the future of virtual-reality interface was murdered by a couple of deadbeats who probably dropped out of the first year of high school, haven't worked an honest day in quite a while and have no redeeming personal qualities to speak of.

Exactly. Fuck this sick fuckin' world.

And the the fuck were the cops doing chasing the guy in the middle of the crowded street? They were endangering the lives of those pedestrians just as much as those criminals. Idiots.

 

[NightmareExpress]

but why stay on a sidewalk when you hear sirens approaching?

I imagine it was all very, very sudden. He was walking across and couldn't see the oncoming car because it might have been behind an intersection. Or rather, it could have been that he couldn't have clearly hear the sirens at that point, the car had just illegally ran through traffic (thus being much closer to him than otherwise able to) and the police were lagging behind a bit.

He turns and freezes in one split second after realizing that a car is barreling straight at him out of nowhere and at ridiculously high speeds. His fight/flight response doesn't even have the time to react before he is struck and instantly killed.

That's the kind of image (full of speculation, might I add) that I'm seeing in my mind...and I haven't the foggiest as to what the exact conditions were like. Sirens can be pretty deceiving before you can accurately see where they're coming from and why.

 

[Vareoth]

Gang members; what a fucking joke. It sucks that creatures such as them are allowed to live whilst doing irreparable damage to society. I hope they get a fitting punishment.

 

[Ashannon Blackthorn]

And the the fuck were the cops doing chasing the guy in the middle of the crowded street? They were endangering the lives of those pedestrians just as much as those criminals. Idiots.

Ummm, the article says nothing about the streets being crowded. All it says is the van hit two vehicles before hitting Mr. Reisse. If you have any other articles that say the police were driving irresponsibly please link it, otherwise you're coming across quite unfairly to the police who may have done absolutely nothing wrong. In fact were doing pretty good in catching a bunch of known gang members, with warrents who were involved in 1) criminal activity and 2) a fatal shoot-out just previous.

 

[talker]

In short;
An engineer of sorts (soft/hardware?) who has spent a good amount of his time studying, working and paving the way for the future of virtual-reality interface was murdered by a couple of deadbeats who probably dropped out of the first year of high school, haven't worked an honest day in quite a while and have no redeeming personal qualities to speak of.

it's kinda depressing in a way, isn't it?

 

[RicoADF]

Gang members; what a fucking joke. It sucks that creatures such as them are allowed to live whilst doing irreparable damage to society. I hope they get a fitting punishment.

It's times like this that I wish the death penalty still existed, seriously a bunch of low life gangs murder a contributing member of society due to their cowardace trying to run away and they will likely get away with a slap on the wrist. They should be lined up infront of a wall and shot, our society has gotten too weak and forgiving then wonders why crime is running rampart.

 

[lacktheknack]

In short;
An engineer of sorts (soft/hardware?) who has spent a good amount of his time studying, working and paving the way for the future of virtual-reality interface was murdered by a couple of deadbeats who probably dropped out of the first year of high school, haven't worked an honest day in quite a while and have no redeeming personal qualities to speak of.

Exactly. Fuck this sick fuckin' world.

And the the fuck were the cops doing chasing the guy in the middle of the crowded street? They were endangering the lives of those pedestrians just as much as those criminals. Idiots.

Hey, you.

Stop attacking police just because you can.

Until you can actually show some evidence that the police were partially responsible for the tragedy, show some respect for the police and the victim and keep your mouth shut.

 

[Eclectic Dreck]

And the the fuck were the cops doing chasing the guy in the middle of the crowded street? They were endangering the lives of those pedestrians just as much as those criminals. Idiots.

Ummm, the article says nothing about the streets being crowded. All it says is the van hit two vehicles before hitting Mr. Reisse. If you have any other articles that say the police were driving irresponsibly please link it, otherwise you're coming across quite unfairly to the police who may have done absolutely nothing wrong. In fact were doing pretty good in catching a bunch of known gang members, with warrents who were involved in 1) criminal activity and 2) a fatal shoot-out just previous.

They engaged in a pursuit through a crowded urban center. You don't need details to know it was reckless.

 

[NickBrahz]

And the the fuck were the cops doing chasing the guy in the middle of the crowded street? They were endangering the lives of those pedestrians just as much as those criminals. Idiots.

Ummm, the article says nothing about the streets being crowded. All it says is the van hit two vehicles before hitting Mr. Reisse. If you have any other articles that say the police were driving irresponsibly please link it, otherwise you're coming across quite unfairly to the police who may have done absolutely nothing wrong. In fact were doing pretty good in catching a bunch of known gang members, with warrents who were involved in 1) criminal activity and 2) a fatal shoot-out just previous.

They engaged in a pursuit through a crowded urban center. You don't need details to know it was reckless.

Would it of been better for the cops to leave the gang members run lose? that could have contributed to more deaths.

 

[unstabLized]

Rest in Peace Mr. Reisse, you had a great mind with great ideas. Hopefully people will take good experience from your work. Such a shame...

 

[Owyn_Merrilin]

In short;
An engineer of sorts (soft/hardware?) who has spent a good amount of his time studying, working and paving the way for the future of virtual-reality interface was murdered by a couple of deadbeats who probably dropped out of the first year of high school, haven't worked an honest day in quite a while and have no redeeming personal qualities to speak of.

Exactly. Fuck this sick fuckin' world.

And the the fuck were the cops doing chasing the guy in the middle of the crowded street? They were endangering the lives of those pedestrians just as much as those criminals. Idiots.

Hey, you.

Stop attacking police just because you can.

Until you can actually show some evidence that the police were partially responsible for the tragedy, show some respect for the police and the victim and keep your mouth shut.

Hey you,

stop defending the cops just because they're authority figures. They ran a high speed chase in a populated area. Forget partially, as far as I'm concerned, they're wholly responsible. The gang bangers would have slowed down a lot sooner had they broken off the chase, and Mr. Reisse would probably be alive right now. They probably wouldn't have lost the suspects either, since this is the 21st century and it was a populated area. It's really not all that hard to radio other cops and have them stop the suspects further down the road if it's that important. And if it's not that important, it's even worse, because that makes the whole thing even more senseless.

 

[afroebob]

Please, just stop talking about whether the cops are at fault or not, if your going to do something on this thread just show some respect for the dead.

Anyways, Mr. Reisse, it is a shame you had to leave us, and what makes it even worse is that you are leaving us right as your work is going to change the way we experience an entire medium. I just hope that wherever you are, your happy.

 

[Bertylicious]

How sad. If only they could have plowed into someone less important like a shop assistant or an unemployed, single, man with deppression and loads of gambling debt.

 

[lacktheknack]

Hey you,

stop defending the cops just because they're authority figures. They ran a high speed chase in a populated area. Forget partially, as far as I'm concerned, they're wholly responsible.

Followed by blah blah blah. I'm pretty ticked at you for this statement, but I'm not elaborating in this thread. It's in very poor taste, which was my original point.

How incredibly sad that in a thread that's focused on the death of an important figure of technology, not just gaming, people feel the need to attack cops. Just like every other bloody crime thread.