Police Say Los Angeles Pedestrian Fatality Not Linked to Hit and Run
The death of a 13-year-old girl as she was crossing the road on a crosswalk in Los Angeles, had initially led to plenty of confusion about whether the two motorists involved in the accident had been at fault. Police have confirmed now that that was not the case.
The tragic accident occurred on Friday morning in Brentwood. Initial reports indicated that the girl had been crossing the road on the crosswalk, and had been hit by two motorists who had then sped off from the scene. Reports that came out later confirmed that the girl had likely been brushed by the side view mirror of one car, causing her to lose her balance and fall right into the path of another moving car. It has also been confirmed that the two motorists did not leave the scene of the accident, but stayed with the victim until help arrived. Rumors that the crash had been caused by two different drivers caused Los Angeles police to look for cars that met the description as given by witnesses at the scene. However, police have now confirmed that the crash was a tragic accident. There are no plans to charge either of the two drivers in this accident.
As California pedestrian accident lawyers often see, accidents involving pedestrians can be fatal, or result in serious injuries. Injuries that result in a pedestrian accident can be extremely serious, and can include severe body trauma such as head and spine injuries when the person is flung to the ground. California has a reputation for being one of the most unfriendly places for pedestrians in the country. That should not come as a surprise to pedestrians here, or to pedestrian accident attorneys in California. While the Golden State has a great climate which encourages walking, the state has done little to improve pedestrian safety. A study last year by Transportation for America names several California metropolitan cities as some of the deadliest for pedestrians in the country. Pedestrians accidents in areas like Santa Ana are fewer in number, and form a much lower percentage of the overall population. However, they account for a large percentage of fatalities. The fatality rates in fact, are disproportionate to the number of people who actually walk to work in these areas.
Most pedestrian accidents can be traced to motorists who simply fail to either look out for a pedestrian when they near a crosswalk, or fail to yield to pedestrians altogether. Either way, it’s a pedestrian who has to pay in the form of serious injuries, or even death. Looking out for pedestrians when you’re at a crosswalk is not a favor to the pedestrian. It is the duty of every motorist, and it is extremely frustrating to Los Angeles accident lawyers to come across motorists who have simply struck a person on a crosswalk, and then proceeded to drive off. This kind of thing happens far too often.
The Reeves Law Group is a law firm with offices throughout California dedicated exclusively to the representation of personal injury victims, including victims of pedestrian accident. Please visit our website at trlglaw.com. If you desire a free consultation on a personal injury matter, please call us at (800) 644-8000 or email us.
The Reeves Law Group is not acting as legal counsel for any party in the matters discussed in this posting.
