2023 Year End Personal Injury Law Review
Our NYC car accident lawyers have seen evey type of motor vehicle there is, but during the last month of December, 2023, going into January, 2024, there were many serious car accidents, many of which resulted in fatalities. Our personal injury lawyers will discuss the legal implications of these accidents.
TIMES SQUARE CRASH
On January 1, 2024, a black SUV, was stopped by NYPD officers for a traffic violation at around 10:20 a.m., and the driver of the vehicle, faced with the prospect of being arrested, fled the scene at high speed and began driving erratically in Times Square. The driver slammed into a barricade near 45th Street and Broadway, killing one woman and injuring eight individuals, including several NYPD officers. The driver was apprehended by police shortly after the crash.
The NYPD and emergency services responded and immediately began treating the injured and securing the area. The injured NYPD officers were taken to a nearby hospital, treated for their injuries, and later released. The eight injured pedestrians were also treated at hospitals throughout the city; fortunately, none sustained life-threatening injuries.
Obviously, the driver of the SUV was negligent for fleeing the police, driving at an excessive rate of speed, and failing to keep his vehicle under proper control, let alone, even maintain the vehicle on the road. But in cases like this it is highly unlikely that someone who was this caseless has adequate insurance to cover the damage that he did to his victims' lives. New York's minimum insurance limits are only $25,000/$50,000, which means that there is only a maximum of $25,000 available for each person, wtih a maximum insurance limit of $50,000. So what can be done in a situation like this? One answer is that if the victims, including the injured police officers have their own vehicles, with higher insurance limits, they can pursue supplemental under insured motorist claims against their own insurance policies up to the limits of their own policies.
WHITE PLAINS MAN FACING DWI CHARGES FOR A CRASH
A White Plains man is facing DWI charges following a pedestrian accident, following a crash that happened at the intersection of Center Street (Route 52) and Route 209 (South Main Street), when the victim was hit by the White Plains man's vehicle while he was walking in the crosswalk. The pedestrian, a man in his 50s, suffered serious injuries and was taken to a hospital for treatment. The driver, who was also injured, was arrested and charged with Driving While Intoxicated and Assault. The police promptly arrived at the scene and found the driver of the car in a state of inebriation. Our NYC pedestrian accident lawyers also know that New York State law requires drivers to exercise due care to avoid hitting pedestrians.
The police reported that the pedestrian was walking within the crosswalk, which indicates that the driver was not adhering to traffic rules. The driver has been identified as a 35-year-old man from White Plains. The victim, on the other hand, remains hospitalized with serious injuries that require immediate medical attention. Our White Plains drunk driving accident lawyers know that New York's Vehicle and Traffic Law prohibits operating a vehicle while intoxicated because alcohol reduces the driver's ability to concentrate and their reaction time, which increases the likelihood of an accident. In cases such as these, not only can the drunk driver be sued, but so can a bar or tavern that served an intoxicated person who caused an accident.
BRONX SANITATION TRUCK AND BUS ACCIDENT CRASH
On December 20, 2023, an accident occurred between an MTA bus and a Department of Sanitation garbage truck left 13 people with minor injuries. The incident took place in the Bronx along Bruckner Boulevard and Hunts Point Avenue. The collision between the MTA bus and the garbage truck happened at night, around 9:10 PM. While we don't yet know the full details of the accident, it's clear that something went wrong during the interaction between the two vehicles. After the accident, eight victims were taken to Lincoln Hospital, while five were taken to St. Barnabas for medical treatment.
Our NYC accident lawyers who sue the government know that there are strict time limits to sue both the City of New York and the MTA Bus Company. In this case, a notice of claim must be filed with both the City of New York and the MTA Bus Company within 90 days of the accident, or any injured party will need to get special permission from the Court to file a late notice of claim. If you were injured in a bus accident, call our New York City bus accident lawyers today.
QUEENS ACCIDENT WHERE A DRIVER BLEW A RED LIGHT
The accident occurred on Monday, Dec. 18, 2023 in the Queens section of New York City . The incident involved a collision between a Chevy Impala and a pickup truck at the intersection of Guy R Brewer Boulevard and South Conduit Avenue. According to reports from the NYPD Highway Patrol, the accident was caused by a driver who ran through a red light. As a result, a 71-year-old man lost his life in this tragic incident. The victim was a 71-year-old great-grandfather, was on his way home from work when the accident occurred. He worked as a caregiver for the disabled and was known to be a kind and compassionate person by those who knew him. According to reports, the decedent was driving in Springfield Gardens when another motorist ran through a red light and crashed into his vehicle. The driver of the Dodge Charger was allegedly driving recklessly at the time of the incident.
CHILD KILLED IN BROOKLYN CRASH
A tragic incident took place in Brooklyn, New York, on November 7, 2019, when an unlicensed teenager was involved in a fatal crash that resulted in the death of a four-year-old boy, and the injuries of an 11-year-old child. This news has shook the entire Brooklyn community. According to police reports, the unlicensed 16-year-old driver was heading east on Atlantic Ave. near Brooklyn Ave. in Crown Heights, when he "failed to navigate the roadway" and slammed into the back of a GMC Sierra 3500 pickup truck where the four year old was sitting in the backseat. Giovanni was pronounced dead at the scene, while the 11-year-old child was rushed to Kings County Hospital, where he was treated for serious but non-life-threatening injuries.
This tragedy occurs almost contemporaneously with Governor Hockul's veto of the Grieving Family's Act, which would have allowed parents of children who are killed to recover damages for their grief. Unfortunately the Governor has folded to the insurance company pressure and has chosen to tell parents who have lost their children that their grief has no value.
QUEENS CHILD KILLED IN HIT AND RUN
Every parent's nightmare occurred on November 30, 2023, when a Queen's mother's 3-year-old son was killed in a hit-and-run accident just a few blocks from their home in Queens. The Queens mother is now trying to come to grips with her devastating loss and seeking justice for her son's death. This loss also reinforces the cruelty and insensitivey shown by Governor Hockul in vetoing the Grieving Families Act.
The child was crossing the street with his grandmother when a vehicle struck him and fled the scene, leaving the child severely injured. He was rushed to the hospital but passed away soon after. The driver is still at large, and his mother is pleading for any information that can lead to his arrest. . Their grief is compounded by the fact that the driver responsible for Quintus's death has not been brought to justice.
Hit-and-run accidents have become increasingly common, and the consequences can be catastrophic. While it is preferable that those responsible for hit and run accidents be held accountable, our NYC car accident lawyers know that most hit and run drivers are never identified, but that doesn't mean that they have no options available for compensation. New York law requires every car insurance policy to provide uninsured motorist benefits, which provides compensation for victims of hit and run accidents, so if you or a member of your household are hit by a car that fled the scene, you can recover compensation from your own insurance company. In the event that there is not a car in the house, there is a public fund, called the Motor Vehicle Accident Indemnification Corp, that provides benefits to victims of hit and run accidents.
BLACK PANTHER STAR INJURED IN MIDTOWN CRASH
On January 1, 2024, Black Panther star, Carrie Bernans, an actress and stunt womanwas injured by crazed Midtown driver, after an out-of-control driver plowed into a food truck that toppled over on a Manhattan street and pinned her underneath in the early hours of the new year. Obiously the reckless driver was responsible for the accident and Ms. Berans who was just standing on the sidewalk was an innocent victim.
