4th Quarter Personal Injury Law Update
A Westchester nurse was seriously injured and hospitalized in October when she was the victim of a hit and run accident. The accident occurred when the nurse who was a pedestrian crossing the street was hit by a vehicle at North Avenue and Fifth Street in New Rochelle, which is a busy intersection and ironically, not far from the New Rochelle police station and New Rochelle Courthouse. Unlike the majority of hit and run accidents the driver was identified and now faces criminal charges. Our Westchester pedestrian accident lawyers know that most hit and run drivers are never identified, but that does not mean that the accident victim is out of luck, since New York law requires that everyone who had a vehicle insured in New York is entitled to uninsured motorist benefits from their own insurance company, and if they do not own a vehicle they are entitled to benefits from a state fund, known as the Motor Vehicle Accident Indemnification Corp., (MVIAC). Fortunately for the nurse. the driver was identified and faces civil liability as well as criminal charges. Our NYC and White Plains pedestrian accident lawyers know that New York's Vehicle and Traffic Law 1146 requires that vehicles exercise due care to avoid hitting pedestrians and yield the right of way to a pedestrian who is already in the crosswalk.
A Dutchess teen was killed this week in a two way car crash, when an SUV while speeding attempted to pass a vehicle and entered the on coming lane. Our Westchester wrongful death lawyers know what a tragedy this is and that the loss of a child causes immeasurable grief to the child's parents. Obviously, under New York Vehicle and Traffic law, 1180, 1121 and 1124, the driver who crossed into the oncoming lane is completely at fault, because it is unlawful to drive faster than is reasonably safe under the circumstances, and a driver cannot pass or enter a travel lane unless the maneuver can be made with reasonable safety. The fact that there was a crash means that it wasn't safe to attempt to pass at the time.
In Rockland County, there was a strange turn of events this week, involving two drunk driver collissions, both which fled the scenes of the accident. One vehicle was found disabled, with a flat tire on the Palisades parkway, with damage to the vehicle that was consistent with just having been invovled in an accident. The driver was found to be intoxicated and arrested, but while the State trooper was performing the investigation, his cruiser was struck by a van, that was driven by a Bronx man that also fled the scene and was later arrested. Our Westchester drunk driving accident lawyers have handled countless drunk driving accidents and know all too well the severity of the harm that can be caused by a drunk driving accident. This weekend another drunk driving accident in Long Island left one person hospitalized and another dead when a teen in Suffolk County, when his vehicle hit two pedestrians while they were crossing the street. The teen driver was arrested for DWI, but will likely face more serious charges. Our drunk driving accident lawyers know that teens often carry minimal insurance which is insufficient to cover the damages they cause in a drunk driving accident. Fortunately, New York law allows victims of drunk driving accidents, to also sue any store, restaurant or bar, that illegally sold alcohol to a minor.
A young woman suffered a fatality while operating a moped in Brooklyn, after being struck by a box truck. The truck driver was making a right hand turn onto Skillman Avenue, when he hit and drove over the woman and the scooter. Our New York truck accident lawyers know that truck drivers are required to keep a proper lookout and make proper use of their mirrors to see bicyclists, scooter operators, motorcycle operators and pededtrians. The claim that the truck driver didn't see the other motorist isn't acceptable, because they are responsible to see what there is to be seen and to exercise their trucks with due regard for other motorists.
On November 30, 2021, a New York State trooper was seriously injured and hospitalized after a box truck crashed into the vehicle he was operating, while he was parked in the town of Greenburgh. Our Westchester police line of injury lawyers know that this trooper is not only entitled to his full regular salary and medical treatment he can sue the driver of the box truck, as well as the driver's employer. New York's General Muncipal Law 205-a, allows police officers to sue anyone who violated a law, including the vehicle and traffic law, which resulted in a personal injury to a police officer. In this case, a collission with a stopped vehicle is a classic violation of Vehicle and Traffic law 1129, which requires drivers to maintain a safe distance between their vehicle and other vehicles to avoid crashing into another vehicle.