Sixteen Year-Old Driver Flees Scene of Hit and Run
According to a story in the New York Times, on June 21st a sixteen year-old driver fled the scene of a hit and run accident that injured four people, including two toddlers. Witnesses to the accident said that the car struck two children in Manhattan, who were playing on a sidewalk. When the driver fled the scene he left the two children, both two years of age, bleeding on the sidewalk. The other two victims of the hit and run, a sixteen year-old and a nineteen year-old, were listed in stable condition. Police officers caught up with the driver and arrested him on charges of reckless endangerment, reckless driving and leaving the scene of an accident.
Shockingly, this hit and run on June 21st follows a string of recent similar events at three Manhattan locations-hitting a total of 18 people. Three of those injured were hospitalized in serious condition and eleven others were treated for less serious injuries.
In one case, a sixty year old driver made the mistake of hitting the gas instead of the brake while pulling out of a parking spot. As a result, the car struck seven pedestrians in Chinatown on the sidewalk and a bench. Two of those people were hospitalized in serious but stable condition.
In another accident, a livery cab jumped a curb and struck a fifty-five-year-old woman in East Harlem-leaving the woman in critical condition.
Whether a driver is young or old, driving is a privilege, not a right. The New York auto accident lawyers at Wingate, Russotti & Shapiro have been helping injured people and their families obtain justice for many years. In fact, in one case, Wingate, Russotti & Shapiro, LLP partner, Stavros Sitinas, obtained a $600,000 settlement for the estate of a man who was killed by an out-of-control vehicle in a strip mall parking lot, which had jumped onto the sidewalk, destroying several concrete planters and a park bench before striking and killing our client. Tragically, this horrific event was witnessed by the six year old daughter of the decedent. The recovery exceeded the total available insurance proceeds by $100,000 because Stavros convinced the driver’s family members to contribute personally to the settlement.
If you, a friend or a family member have been seriously injured, as a driver, passenger or as a pedestrian, please call the law offices of Wingate, Russotti & Shapiro, LLP, for a free consultation regarding your case.
