Streetsblog.org recently looked into pedestrian accident records involving crossing guards and found that between 2012 and 2022, drivers in New York City have struck and injured 73 school crossing guards. Many of the injuries were not minor. At least seven victims suffered broken bones and two were knocked unconscious. The investigation also found that police charged fewer than one-third of the drivers who struck and injured the crossing guards, who are themselves employees of NYPD.
Major Injuries and Negligence (Carelessness) Reported
Crossing guards are posted on sidewalks and only venture out into the street when children are in the crosswalk where pedestrians have the right of way during walk and flashing don’t walk signals. However, crosswalks are where more than half of the injured crossing guards were hit by vehicles, the report states. For example, in 2014, a driver struck a crossing guard from behind. Her body became airborne on impact and she hit the ground head first, police wrote in a workers’ compensation claim.
A witness stated that she appeared to be unconscious for about five to seven seconds. The driver in that case told police she did not “see the guard” and was not ticketed or charged. Often, the guards who were struck in these collisions were helping children and other vulnerable road users across the street. One Bronx crossing guard, for example, was walking alongside a wheelchair user in 2013 when she was struck. Four years later, another crossing guards suffered a horrific compound leg fracture when she was hit in a crosswalk while helping a mother and child across the street.
While crossing guards are equipped with whistles and use their hands to signal drivers to yield, in more than one-third of the injury crashes, motorists ignored such instructions before striking the guards. In one case, a taxi driver who became impatient with pedestrians in a Manhattan crosswalk, careened onto a curb to get around them and ended up striking a crossing guard, according to the report. The guard told the cab driver to stop three times, police said.
That taxi driver fled the scene of the 2019 crash — one of 31 drivers to flee after injuring a crossing guard during the study period. Statistics also showed that in New York City, the 2021-2022 school year was the most dangerous for crossing guards in the period studied. One in every 230 guards was injured that year — far higher than the average from 2014 to 2019 school years — which was one injury per 393 guards.
Compensation for Victims
Injured victims of pedestrian accidents and bicycle accidents can seek compensation from at-fault parties for damages including, but not limited to, medical expenses, lost wages and benefits, hospitalization, rehabilitation, permanent injuries, disabilities, past and future pain and suffering, etc. Families that have lost loved ones in pedestrian accidents can seek compensation for damages such as medical and funeral costs, pain and suffering, lost future income, etc.
Pedestrian accident victims and their families should also remember that they can seek compensation for injuries or losses in collisions even if the victim was not walking in a marked crosswalk and even if the driver involved in collision was not charged. Our law firm recovered the full one-million-dollar insurance policy for a girl who was not in the crosswalk when a motor vehicle hit her.
Contacting an Experienced Lawyer
If you or a loved one has been injured in a pedestrian accident or bicycle accident, or if you have lost a loved one in an auto accident caused by a negligent (careless) driver, the experienced New York personal injury attorneys at the Law Offices of Kenneth A. Wilhelm can help you better understand your legal rights and options, and also fight hard to recover just compensation for you.
For over 53 years, our skilled accident attorneys have established a proven track record of helping injured victims get fair compensation for their losses. We recently recovered $5,600,000 for a bicyclist who was hit by a van, and $2,550,000 for another victim of a truck accident, and $3,000,000 for a pedestrian who was hit by a car, and $2,000,000 in a hit-and-run accident, and the full $1,000,000 insurance policy for a pedestrian who was hit by a truck, and $4,625,000 for a driver who was in a car and was hit by a van, and $2,500,000 for a man who fell through an improperly secured hole. Also, one of our clients obtained a verdict for $43,940,000 and another of our clients got a verdict for $23,500,000, both in medical malpractice cases.
Please contact us TOLL FREE 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at 1-800-WORK-4-YOU (1-800-967-5496). WE CAN EVEN COME TO YOU. There is no attorneys’ fee unless we recover money for you. We can also help with personal injury, lead poisoning and medical malpractice cases including, brachial plexus palsy (Erb’s palsy) and cerebral palsy cases in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, or Florida. If you have been seriously injured in any of the 50 U.S. states, please call us and we will try to help you with your case.
Other TOLL FREE phone numbers for us are:
1-800-RADIO-LAW, 1-888-WYPADEK, OR 1-800-LAS-LEYES
Please visit us at: www.WORK4YOULAW.com
Source: https://nyc.streetsblog.org/2023/09/11/a-very-dangerous-job-dozens-of-nyc-school-crossing-guards-injured-by-drivers-since-2012-records-show