A woman hit in crosswalk shows that drivers not paying attention near crosswalks can get expensive, and worse, someone could get hurt.

ORINDA, CALIFORNIA, USA, August 10, 2021 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Walking to class at a local college, like she had done on many other days, a woman was hit by a pickup truck. Clearly not something she had planned for her day. The woman used a crosswalk as all of us have done many times. Sadly this time didn’t work out so good for her.

Walking to Class

Just prior to the collision, the student who was hit, was walking to class at a local college.  She was walking along a pathway that feeds into a crosswalk which crosses a perimeter road.  When she reached the crosswalk, she checked for cross traffic and saw a pickup truck approaching the crosswalk.  The pickup truck was slowing and appeared to be yielding the right of way to the pedestrian, as it should. This is of course required by law. 

The pedestrian walked into the crosswalk but the pickup truck continued forward, striking the pedestrian on her left side before she could move out of the way.  The force of that impact propelled the pedestrian out of the crosswalk, before she landed hard on the asphalt pavement.

The Drivers Side

The defendant driver claimed that she could not see the pedestrian. She said this was because the sun was in her eyes.  One question then of course for the driver is “What is the safe speed when you can’t see?”. This is the basic speed law.

The college district police investigated the collision. They concluded that the pedestrian was not in the crosswalk at the time of the collision. They said this because she was found on the ground outside of the crosswalk.  The police officer did not take into account that the impact propelled and carried the pedestrian outside of the crosswalk.

The Outcome

As a result of the collision, the pedestrian suffered several injuries. This included an open fracture of her left tibia, a concussion, a laceration to her forehead, and multiple contusions and abrasions.  She was transported to a local trauma center where she underwent surgery to repair her left ankle.  After a short period of hospitalization, she was released from the hospital. 

During the six months after her hospital visit, she received physical therapy and outpatient orthopedic care. This was needed before returning to her regular activities.  At the end of her therapy she was greeted with nearly $22,000 in medical bills. This alone would scare any student. Thankfully, her medical expenses were recoverable along with other damages with the help of her attorney.  The Mastrangelo Law Offices were able to settle her claim with the responsible driver’s insurance company for the total sum of $290,000.

Please pay attention when you drive through crosswalks.

Scott Bourquin
The Bourquin Group
+1 949-272-0611
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