A 76-year-old pedestrian who was struck by a car two months ago in Queens, NYC, died from her injuries. Maria Damaco was crossing the intersection of Fresh Pond Road and Myrtle Ave Avenue when she was hit by car making a left turn. The car driver, a 36-year-old woman, stayed at the scene of the accident.
Read more in the NY Daily News
A pedestrian died, a bicyclist was critically injured and two drivers suffered personal injury in a car accident in New York City. The accident occurred last Thursday in Queens. 56 year old Irene Lee was driving her Porsche on Horace Harding Expressway service road near the Intersection of Junction Boulevard. She lost control of her car and jumped the curb, hitting a pedestrian and a bicyclist. She then fled the scene of the accident and hit two other cars waiting at a nearby red light. She then fled away one more time and drove North on Junction. She later had second thoughts and returned to the scene of the accident. The pedestrian, the bicyclist and one of the car drivers were transported to the hospital. The other car driver suffered minor injuries and was treated at the scene of the crash. The pedestrian, a 21-year-old woman, suffered severe head trauma and died from her injuries. The bicyclist, a 26 year old woman, was in critical condition. The driver was in stable condition. Irene Lee was arrested and charged with running a red light and leaving the scene of the accident resulting in death which is a class D felony.
Read in the Gothamist
A bicyclist was fatally hit by a car that didn’t stop after an accident last Saturday in Brooklyn, NYC. The police believe that the driver hit the bicyclist intentionally. 35-year-old Matthew Von Olen was riding back home from a shift at a bar in downtown Manhattan when he was struck by a car in Williamsburg. A video obtained by the police shows that the driver intentionally hit the bicyclist and killed him. The car driver first slowed down at the level of the bicyclist who was riding in the bike lane and then hit him. As Von Olen fell off his bike, the car driver hit him a second time and then ran over him and dragged him about 20 to 30 feet before fleeing. Von Olen suffered severe trauma and died from his injuries. The police are still looking for the car driver who was driving a black 2014-2015 Chevy Camaro with gold New York State license plates (see picture from surveillance camera). Read more in the Gothamist
A motorcyclist died in an accident in Brooklyn, NYC, this weekend. The motorcyclist was heading north on Buffalo Ave. near E. New York Ave. in Crown Heights early Sunday morning when he struck a limo. He was rushed to the hospital but he couldn’t be saved.
Motorcycle accidents in New York City always increase during the months of June, July, August and September. There are usually between 250 and 350 motorcycle accidents every month of the summer in the city. Because motorcyclists only have a helmet to protect themselves, motorcycle accidents often results in serious injuries or death.
Read more in the NY Daily News
After a 30-year-old pedestrian was killed by an unlicensed driver who jumped the curb in Brooklyn (see previous blog ), NYC, her family petitioned the Brookyn DA’s office to initiate a grand jury investigation into the accident and obtain justice for their loved one.
Last December Victoria Nicodemus was walking on a Fort Greene sidewalk with her boyfriend when she was fatally struck by a SUV that apparently jumped the curb to avoid a bus. The SUV was driven by 39-year-old Marlon Sewell. The driver had his license suspended and wasn’t supposed to be behind the wheel. Also according to a recent article from the Gothamist, a preliminary police report indicated that Sewell jumped the curb to avoid the bus in front of him but in a statement yesterday, Transportation Altternatives Deputy Director Caroline Samponaro said that Sewell made the reckless decision to drive on the sidewalk to avoid waiting behind the bus.
Immediately after the accident, Sewell was charged with two misdemeanors and thought he would get away with a $500 ticket. However after the Brooklyn DA office agreed to open a grand jury investigation things changed. Yesterday the grand jury voted for Sewell to be indicted for second-degree manslaughter.
An elderly woman that caused a 10-car crash in New York City last Sunday died from her injuries on Tuesday. 78 year old Barbara Capone was driving her car on Travis Ave in Staten Island when she hit a car. She didn’t stop. Instead she sped up and crashed into several other vehicles waiting at a red light at the intersection of Travis Ave and Victory Blvd. The impact was so strong that her car went airborne and landed on other vehicles waiting at the intersection. A 75 year old man was pinned inside his car and died at the scene of the accident. 10 other people were injured in the car crash including Barbara Capone and were transported to the hospital. Capone suffered severe head trauma and passed away two days later.
A woman died and her husband was injured in a car accident in New York City on Sunday. 86 year old Andrew Huang was driving his car with Amy Huang, his 83 year old wife on 34th Ave near 91st Street in Elmhurst, Queens. All of a sudden the car accelerated and crashed into a parked car on the side of the road. The impact was so strong that the parked car jumped the curb and careened into scaffolding. According to the police, Mr Huang may have stepped on the gas pedal instead of the brake pedal. The couple were taken to the hospital. The wife who suffered severe head and body trauma was pronounced dead upon her arrival to the hospital. The husband only suffered a cut to his arm.
Read more in DNA and NY Daily News
A 4 year old boy died after falling in an elevator shaft inside a luxury NYC garage. According to the police, Jack Roberts slipped through a 10 inch gap between a freight elevator and the shaft at the Park Slope Garage Condominium in Brooklyn, NYC. For some unknown reason, the toddler and his parents were allowed to use a freight elevator that was meant for vehicles to get to the third floor of the garage. Other owners of parking spaces who learned about the elevator accident were in shock. They said it was very unusual for the staff to allow anyone in the freight elevator. Car owners usually pick up and drop their car in a designated area at the entrance of the garage. Then the staff takes care of taking them in and out of their respective parking spaces using the freight elevators.
After the accident happened, The Department of Buildings filed a complaint requesting an investigation.
The luxury garage was one the first “condominiums for cars” in New York State with more than 100 parking spaces. The actual price of a parking space there is estimated at $300,000. The initial price for a parking space at the garage when it opened in 1986 was $29,000. At the time it was already considered a very high price. It went up over the years as Park Slope developed into a trendy neighborhood. It recently shot up after another similar condominium garage located nearby closed.
32 year old Michelle Mignott was killed in a car accident in New York City in 2014. The two reckless drivers who were indicted in the accident will be tried in August if they don’t accept a plea deal. Richard Roman-Santos and Gerard Herbert both charged with vehicular manslaughter appeared yesterday in front of Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Vincent Del Giudice. The judge told then that if no plea agreement was reached the case would go to trial on August 1st. The two men were previously offered 3 to 9 years in jail if they pleaded guilty but they both refused.
On August 17th 2014, Herbert was driving in Brooklyn with two female passengers. One of them, Michelle Mignott was lying on the back seat. As he was making a left turn, Roman-Santos who was driving at a speed of 94 miles per hours crashed into him. Mignott was killed in the accident. Herbert who first refused to take a breathalyzer was later tested with .20. Roman Santos accepted the breathalyzer and was found to be at the limit of .08.
The two men are expected to be back in front of the judge on June 7th and will have to say if they accept the plea deal or not.
3 year old Mariam Dansoko was killed in a car accident in New York at the beginning of the week. Mariam was crossing the street with her mom who was pushing her brother in a stroller. All 3 pedestrians were in the crosswalk when a car made a left turn and fatally hit the little girl who was right behind her mom. According to Streetblog, despite evidence that the driver didn’t yield the right of way, he hasn’t been charged yet. The accident occurred in the Bronx. The car was travelling on Gerard Avenue and made a left turn onto E. 164th Street when it struck the toddler. According to witnesses the driver of the car was going too fast.
Read more in Streetblog
Picture, courtesy of Goggle Map, shows where the car was turning from and the location of the accident
New York Personal Injury Attorneys Blog