$1,050,000 Settlement

This wrongful death action arose from a fatal pedestrian collision involving a 75-year-old woman who resided in New Hyde Park, Nassau County. On the evening of the incident, at approximately 7:00 p.m., the decedent was visiting a friend and attempted to cross Marcus Avenue in Garden City Park. In the area of the collision, Marcus Avenue consists of two lanes of travel in each direction with no traffic control devices, stop signs, traffic lights, or marked crosswalks.

As the decedent crossed the roadway, she was struck by a vehicle traveling along Marcus Avenue. That vehicle came to a stop a short distance ahead. While the decedent was in the roadway, she was then struck by a second vehicle and was pronounced dead at the scene. The decedent was a widow with two adult children.

The defense disputed liability and damages. In addition to asserting that the case carried limited value because the decedent was retired, widowed, and survived only by adult children, the defense claimed that any conscious pain and suffering was limited, in that the decedent was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident. The defendants also placed blame on the decedent, contending that she was comparatively negligent for crossing four lanes of travel, outside of a crosswalk, in a dark area of the roadway. The second driver further attempted to shift responsibility entirely to the first vehicle, arguing that the initial impact caused all of the decedent’s injuries and that the second collision was not a contributing cause of her death.

Our investigation uncovered critical evidence undermining these defenses. We determined that the driver of the first vehicle looked down to retrieve a water bottle in the moments immediately preceding impact, diverting her attention from the roadway and thereby failing to observe the decedent crossing the street. In addition, we performed a detailed accident reconstruction, including calculations of line of sight, stopping distance, and vehicle speed, which demonstrated that the driver should have seen the decedent well before impact and had ample time and distance to avoid the collision. This analysis directly refuted claims that the incident was unavoidable or caused primarily by the decedent’s conduct.

Based on this evidence, we alleged that both drivers were negligent and that each contributed to the fatal injuries, while forcefully countering the defense’s attempts to shift blame to the decedent. Faced with compelling proof on liability, exposure to shared responsibility, and the risk of an adverse jury finding, the parties agreed to mediation. The case ultimately settled for $1.05 million.