New York Personal Injury Law Recap June 2022
Our NYC personal injury lawyers and White Plains accident attorneys keep abreast of the occurences in New York City, Westchester, Rockland and Long Island that involve personal injury law issues. A few of the newsworthy incidents that happened in New York City and the surrounding areas in June, 2022 are as follows.
On June 10, 2022, a gifted musician and celebrity was the victim of a drunk driving crash on Manhattan's upper east side. The guitarist from They might be giants was hospitalized following a crash caused by a drunk driver. The crash happened when the famous musician was leaving a show at the bowery ballroom, and his vehicle was t-boned with enough force to cause it to flip. For this to happen the other driver must have been going at a speed well in excess of New York City's speed limit. Our NYC drunk driving accident lawyers know that despite stern laws, injuries and even fatalities from drunk driving accidents continue to occur. Our NYC car accident attorneys know that New York's vehicle and traffic law 1192, prohibits operation of a vehicle, even when a driver's ability to drive is impaired. However, in drunk driving accident cases the liability of the driver is only the first step, because drunk drivers rarely have enough insurance to pay for the damage that they do, our NYC lawyers also explore Dram shop liability. If a driver became intoxicated at a bar or restaurant, the bar or restaurant that contribued to their intoxication can also be sued. Likewise, if an accident was caused by a drunk driver under the age of 21, anyone who illegally provided the underage driver with alcohol, which contributed to his intoxication can be sued.
Long Island was the scene of another drunk driving fatality. On May 23, 2022, three women died in a New Hyde Park vehicle crash, caused by a 22 year old drunk driver, that was apparently driving at an unsafe speed. The force of the impact was strong enough that the three occupants of the impacted vehicle were all killed in the crash and two passengers in the drunk driver's car were also injured. The 22 year old driver is now facing vehicular manslaughter charges for causing the fatal crash while intoxicated.
Despite all the tough talk on enforcing DWI laws, Suffolk County recently received alot of publicity after it came out that an off duty Central Islip police officer, who caused a drunk driving crash, that injured another motorist, not only refused a breathilizer, but he was not even arrested, even though our New York drunk driving accident lawyers know that refusal of a chemical test is admissible evidence that the driver was intoxicated. Even after refusing to take the breathilizer, the officer was not arrested, and was only docked four days of pay for failing refusing to take the test. This is another example of authorities protecting their own and laws being selectively enforced. A block from our NYC office was the scene of a double deck tour bus in Herald Square on May 24, 2022 which resulted in a UPS truck on the sidewalk infront of Old Navy. This accident involved two commercial drivers that were driving extremely large vehicles that warrants extra caution while being operated. Our New York truck and bus accident lawyers know that for a crash like this to have occurred, both drivers had to be at fault and travelling at unsafe speeds.
A tragic hit and run accident occured in the Bed-Stuy section of Brooklyn, on June 14, 2022, where a middle age woman who was riding a scooter, was hit by a vehicle that fled the scene of the accident. Our New York CIty hit and run accident attorneys know that these drivers who flee the scene of accidents are rarely ever identified. For anyone who owns a vehicle, they are entitled to unidentified motortist benefits from their own insurance company and when the victim of a hit and run does not have their own insurance, they have to file for benefits from the Motor Vehicle Accident Indemnification Corporation, which is a State funds that provides benefits for hit and run accident victims.
On June 28, 2022, the intersection of East 66th Street and Ralph Avenue in Brooklyn was the scene of a multi-vehicle crash in which seven people were injured. Our New York City car accident lawyers have extensive experience in handling mutli-vehicle crashes, and often in these situations more than one vehicle is at fault. A common question that people who were involved in a multi-vehicle crash ask is what happens if more than one vehicle is at fault. Our NYC auto accident attorneys know that New York law provides for joint and several liability for all vehicles who were at fault at all and whose actions contributed to the crash. In other words, all drivers whose negligence played a role in causing a multi-vehicle crash can be sued for injuries resulting from the accident.
In another tragic incident in Brooklyn on June 25, 2022, a teenager suffered fatal injuries after being hit by a BMW, while he was crossing the street. Our NYC pedestrian accident lawyers know that drivers often try to blame the pedestrian, but in this case, the evidence from the scene tells a different story. There was extensive damage to the vehicle's windshield which indicates that the force of the impact was heavy enough to not only lift the teen onto the car's hood, but there was sufficient force to shatter the winshield, which could not have happened unless the driver was travelling well in excess of the NYC speed limit of 25 miles per hour. Unfortunately this was not the only tragedy involving a young pedestrian hit by a car this week. On June 28, 2022, a pre-teen girl in the Bronx, was hit by a car which was travelling at a high speed down a residential street. This incident was caught on a surveillance camera which shows that the child was thrown in the air, and the vehicle continued to travel at a high rate of speed, even after the young girl went flying.
