So you try to only cross a street at a marked crosswalk. If only there were a guarantee that drivers would keep to the rules and allow pedestrians in a crosswalk the right of way. It is not unusual for attorneys handling claims resulting from motor vehicle accidents to be approached by pedestrians who were hit by a motor vehicle as they were crossing the street in a marked crosswalk. These matters typically have devastating injuries that can leave the pedestrian with lifelong disabilities or perhaps kill the pedestrian. Beneath we discuss reported examples concerning pedestrian injuries. Case 1: In this case a bus struck a pedestrian as she was crossing the street in a crosswalk. The pedestrian was a fifty year old female on her way to buy her grandchildren some gifts. As she was on her way to a nearby store she had a shpping cart in front of her. The bus struck her and then continued to run her over. The bus driver did not even realize she had struck a shopping cart and had run over the victim until passengers in the bus began screaming for her to stop the bus. The force of the impact and the weight of the bus running her over resulted in her sustaining fractures to her rib, fractures to her pelvis, and a fracture to her spine. She will have to undergo hip replacement surgery due to her injuries. The law firm that handled this lawsuit reported that they obtained a settlement of $1,250,000 on behalf of the victim. Case 2: This case involved the driver of a rental car who was speeding while in a high traffic region of a large urban city. There were a lot of pedestrians in the region. He ran a red light and slammed into a van. This forced the van into a crosswalk which was being crossed by a pedestrian. The pedestrian, a twenty five year old male, suffered a spinal cord fracture injury that left him with total paralysis from the chest down. The law firm that helped the pedestrian started a lawsuit against both the driver and the company that rented the car to the driver. Unable to reach a settlement, the law firm took the case to trial. The jury verdict was partially upheld in the amount of $20.3 million by the trial judge. This included $10 million for future pain and suffering. The remainder covered the expense of medical care, past and future loss of earning capacity, and pain and suffering. Case 3: This case report involved the driver of a school bus making a left hand turn at an intersection. While making the turn the bus ran over a pedestrian’s foot. The victim was a 54 year old woman who was walking across an intersection in a designated crosswalk. The driver of the bus was oblivious to what had transpired. It took the efforts of witnesses getting the driver’s attention and getting the driver to go into reverse so that the wheel of the bus would release the pedestrian’s foot. The pedestrian sustained several significant injuries to her foot and leg. The woman had to have numerous surgeries in order to try to save her leg. In the end, though, she lost her leg as she needed a below the knee amputation. Following the amputation she experienced repetitive phantom pain. The report of this matter by the law firm that handled it indicated that they took the case to trial and attained a jury verdict in the amount of $5.9 Million on behalf of the pedestrian. By comparing and contrasting these lawsuit we find first that each case is unique. Extrapolating from the case it is clear that a case can involve a car, a bus, a truck, or even a motorcycle. The plaintiffs, even when we consider cases involving only pedestrians, can be male or female and can be any age. The claims, however, do normally share a number of things in common. First, crosswalks are no assurance of safety. Drivers are easily distracted. In the first claim previously mentioned the driver did not even comprehend that she had caused an accident and had run over a person. In the second case the driver was speeding and went right through a red light. In the third claim bystanders had to get the driver to reverse the vehicle so that as to release the pedestrian’s foot pinned under the vehicle. Victims of pedestrian injuries of the type highlighted in these cases should consult a highly skilled and experienced pedestrian accident lawyer.
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Do you think you're safe by adhering to the rules and using a crosswalk to cross the street? You you make sure that you cross a street at a marked crosswalk. If perhaps there were an assurance that drivers would stick to the rules and grant pedestrians in a crosswalk the right of way. Claims concerning pedestrians hurt in a motor vehicle accident as they were in a crosswalk are among those taken on by any lawyer who handles motor vehicle accident cases. These claims often involve ...
Joseph Hernandez is an Attorney accepting pedestrian accident cases. To learn more about pedestrian accident and fatal car crash matters visit the websites
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