Automobile Accidents Affecting Pedestrians In Crosswalks
So you try to only cross a street at a marked crosswalk. Imagine if only there were a guarantee that drivers would follow the rules and grant pedestrians in a crosswalk the right of way. It is not uncommon for lawyers handling claims resulting from motor vehicle accidents to be approached by pedestrians who were hit by an automobile as they were crossing the street in a marked crosswalk. When a motor vehicle accident involves a pedestrian the injuries are oftentimes severe and have disastrous and irreversible consequences. Look at the following cases.
Case 1: This documented case involved the driver of a bus which hit a pedestrian. When the accident happened the victim was in a marked crosswalk. The driver did not halt after striking the pedestrian. As the bus kept going it ran over the pedestrian. The pedestrian a fifty year old woman, a grandmother, who was on her way to buy presents for her grandchildren from a local store. 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. The woman will have to undergo hip replacement surgery as a result of her injuries. The law firm that handled this case reported that they procured a settlement of $1,250,000 for the victim.
Case 2: A driver was speeding in a heavily trafficked area of a large metropolitan city. There were a large number of pedestrians in the area. The driver was operating a rental car. He ran a red light and hit a van. This forced the van into a crosswalk which was being crossed by a pedestrian. The pedestrian, a twenty five year old man, suffered a spinal cord fracture injury that left him with full paralysis from the chest down.
The law firm that handled this matter filed a claim for the pedestrian victim against the driver and the car rental company. The case went to trial with a judge upholding $20.3 million of the more substantial jury verdict. This sum was intended to cover medical expenses (for the amount incurred up to the trial and for the amount for the care he will need in the future), the pedestrian