Cape Cod Injury Lawyer Blog
In the immediate aftermath of a pedestrian accident, it is not always clear what happened. This is all the more true when the driver chooses to leave the scene of an accident. One recent pedestrian versus car accident in Methuen left a Massachusetts woman fighting for her life while the driver apparently chose to leave her there and eventually drive to a police station. He was charged with leaving the scene of an accident causing injury.
The car accident is said to have occurred as the 70-year-old woman was attempting to cross a street shortly after 5:30 p.m. on Dec. 11. The specific details of the crash were not reported, though the driver showed up at police headquarters about a half hour after the collision. He first told police he thought he hit a deer, but 10 minutes later he acknowledged that the significant damage to his car caused him to think he may have hit a person.
A week after the car accident, the victim remained at the Boston Medical Center with critical injuries. She apparently fractured her pelvis and suffered significant trauma. Her long term prognosis was not reported.
While the car accident remains under investigation, Massachusetts authorities have preliminarily indicated that no further criminal charges are anticipated. Nevertheless, the severely injured woman, or her family in the even she does not survive her injuries, have legal rights under our state’s personal injury laws. If the evidence suggests that the driver negligently caused or contributed to the victim’s injuries, our civil courts will entertain claims for monetary damages. In this tragedy, negligence issues may exist concerning the driver’s actions leading up to the crash, as well as his actions afterwards by leaving an injured person lying alone in the street to fend for herself.
Source: Eagle-Tribune, “Methuen crash victim, 70, remains critical,” Brian Messenger, Dec. 19, 2012