Hit and Run

Sheriff Arrested After South Los Angeles Car Accident

July 26, 2011 | by Robert Walch

A South Los Angeles car accident has resulted in the drunk driving arrest of an L.A. County Sheriff deputy. Michael Grundy, a 45 year old sheriff deputy, apparently was driving under the influence and collided with another car in an intersection accident in South Los Angeles.

According to the Los Angeles Times, Deputy Grundy, who allegedly was driving with twice the legal limit of alcohol in his blood, then fled the scene of the Los Angeles accident, before being found by two other Los Angeles sheriff deputies, who brought Grundy back to the scene of the car accident in Los Angeles. Grundy was then arrested by the California Highway Patrol.

2 Injured When Ambulance Hit by Hit and Run Driver in Los Angeles Car Accident

March 30, 2011 | by Robert Walch

A car accident in Los Angeles, involving an ambulance and a hit and run driver, resulted in two paramedics needing hospital care. The ambulance was transporting a patient in the Watts area of Los Angeles when it was hit by the car.

According to the Los Angeles Times, the patient who was being transported in the ambulance did not appear to suffer effects from the car accident and was transported to hospital by another ambulance.

One of the ambulance drivers was rendered unconscious in the Los Angeles car accident and the other injured his shoulder. The paramedics were taken to Long Beach Memorial Medical Center, where they received treatment before being released.

The driver of the other vehicle involved in the Los Angeles vehicle collision apparently left the scene by foot. In these circumstances, the paramedics should be able to make a Los Angeles workers’ compensation claim. The paramedics and passenger in the ambulance may have a Los Angeles personal injury accident claim against the driver and owner of the other vehicle involved. It is unknown at this time if this was a stolen vehicle. A department of motor vehicles search should turn up the owner of the other vehicle and investigation may lead to the whereabouts of the driver and whether there is any liability insurance.

It is unknown at this time if the ambulance was traveling with its lights and siren on, or why the Los Angeles accident occurred.

The ambulance company may also have an uninsured motorist policy to protect injured persons involved in a scenario like this, if the driver is not identified and no insurance or insufficient insurance turns up for the owner of the other vehicle.

Australian Man Will Go To Jail For Los Angeles Hit And Run Accident Death

March 10, 2011 | by Robert Walch

Ryan Bowman, an Australian man who killed a young woman in a Los Angeles pedestrian accident, will be sentenced Friday morning as part of a plea agreement that has been reached with prosecutors. The accident occurred on the Sunset Strip in the West Hollywood area of Los Angeles, California.

The woman who was killed in the Los Angeles car accident, Lauren Ann Freeman, was leaving a concert at the popular Roxy Theatre, crossing the street, when Bowman, in his Bentley, struck Freeman and knocked her about 50 feet, where she died at the scene. Bowman allegedly fled the scene and abandoned the Bentley about a mile and half later, near Melrose and La Cienega, in Los Angeles, California.

Bowman has since admitted that he was the driver involved in this pedestrian accident in Los Angeles. Since it is assumed that police did not catch Bowman until well after the accident, it was probably too late to run tests to see if Bowman was under the influence at the time of the accident, which is often the reason people flea the scene of a collision.

Besides the jail time that he faces, Mr. Bowman will also be subject to a personal injury lawsuit by the family of the woman who was killed in the pedestrian accident. Ms. Freeman had just graduated from the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising (FIDM) and her family will claim that she had a very promising future that was cut short by her wrongful death. The fact that Bowman left the scene will be used against him if he argues the accident was not his fault.

Suspect Flees Los Angeles Hit and Run Accident Via Metro Bus

March 7, 2011 | by Robert Walch

A man fled the scene of a downtown Los Angeles car accident yesterday by boarding a Metro bus, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. The suspect in the hit and run collision has not yet been identified or located.

The car accident in downtown Los Angeles occurred at the intersection of 7th Street and Alvarado Street, when one of the vehicles apparently ran a red light. While the LAPD was saying it is unknown which vehicle ran the red light, the odds are that the driver who fled the scene was the culprit.

In our experience, hit and run drivers have fled the scene of the accident for many reasons, including because they have been intoxicated, the vehicle is stolen, their status in the country is not legal, they are in a hurry to get somewhere, etc. Usually it is the person who is not responsible for the accident that flees and does not exchange information at the scene.

The other vehicle in this Los Angeles hit and run accident had three occupants who were taken to a hospital with injuries that were described as non-life-threatening.

Because the vehicle was left at the scene of the downtown Los Angeles auto collision, police investigators will be able to determine who the owner of the vehicle is. Once they locate the owner, they can determine through eyewitness testimony if the owner was in fact the driver who fled the scene by bus.

Woman Seriously Injured in Los Angeles Hit and Run Accident

February 24, 2011 | by Robert Walch

A Los Angeles woman was seriously injured in a hit and run accident in South Los Angeles. The woman was crossing the street at 111th Place and Figueroa Street when she was hit by a Toyota Camry. The woman who was driving the Camry left the scene of the accident and was not located.

The injured woman had injuries that were described as life-threatening head trauma and was being treated at Harbor UCLA Medical Center.

It is against the law for a person to leave the scene of an accident without stopping to provide their information. If the driver of the Camry is found, she will face serious legal charges for the Los Angeles hit and run accident.

In addition to the criminal charges, the driver will likely face a personal injury claim made against her on behalf of the woman who was injured in the hit and run accident. In situations like this, the driver of the vehicle often does not have enough insurance coverage to cover the extensive damages that the injured woman has likely incurred, including hospital bills which can be six or seven figures.

The family of the injured woman should immediately contact a Los Angeles personal injury attorney who can investigate the relevant insurance coverages and liability, to see if there is possibly an uninsured motorist or underinsured motorist claim that can be made with the injured party’s insurance company as well.

2 Police Officers Injured in Los Angeles Hit and Run Accident

February 15, 2011 | by Robert Walch

Two Los Angeles Police Department officers were injured when their vehicle was rear ended in Los Angeles. The two occupants of the car that rear ended the patrol car fled the scene and were not located by police.

The Los Angeles rear end accident happened near the intersection of Whitworth Drive and Fairfax Boulevard. According to the Los Angeles Times, the two officers who were injured in the accident sustained back and neck injuries and were treated at a local hospital.

This will likely be considered a work accident and the officers should be able to make a workers’ compensation claim for their injuries. Also, because the suspects left the vehicle and fled the scene on foot, police will be able to determine who the owner of the vehicle was. This will help investigators determine if the owner was involved in the Los Angeles car accident or if the car was stolen from the owner prior to the accident, in which case the owner may not bear any legal liability.

If the owner carried liability insurance, and was the driver or allowed someone else to drive the car, the police officers may make a bodily injury insurance claim against the owner’s insurance coverage. If no insurance is found, then the police officers may make a claim with their own uninsured motorist coverage, which may be covered by the police department for this type of situation.

Hit and Run Driver Kills Pedestrian in Pasadena Accident

February 4, 2011 | by Robert Walch

A 52 year old woman was killed last week, while on her motorized wheelchair, when she was hit by a car in Pasadena, California. The wrongful death pedestrian accident allegedly occurred when DeShaun Chapman, a 28 year old man, was driving at a high speed at about 6:30 p.m. when he swerved to avoid a car pulling out from a driveway. Chapman went into oncoming traffic, overcorrected and lost control of his vehicle, hitting the woman and a wall, resulting in the woman being pinned underneath.

Chapman, who fled the scene after the Pasadena pedestrian accident, later returned to the scene and was arrested and charged with vehicular manslaughter.

The driver of the sedan, who also fled the scene, has not been found. If found, the driver of this car may also face similar criminal charges.

The family of the victim will likely make a Pasadena wrongful death claim against Chapman, and may also be able to pursue an uninsured motorist claim, where the uninsured motorist coverage, if any, would take the place of the driver who fled the scene and was not located.

Pedestrian Killed in Los Angeles Hit and Run Accident

January 30, 2011 | by Robert Walch

According to the Los Angeles Times, an 18 year old pedestrian has been killed in Los Angeles when she was struck by a pickup truck. The driver of the pickup truck, who apparently slowed down after hitting the woman, but did not stop, has been identified as a Latino man who had a large beard.

The hit and run auto v. pedestrian accident in Los Angeles occurred in the Vermont Vista neighborhood, in South Los Angeles. The woman was crossing Figueroa Street where it meets 66th street, at about 10:30pm, when she was hit by the car.

The woman was taken to California Hospital Medical Center, where she died of her injuries from this collision.

If the driver of the vehicle who hit the woman is not found, the family of the victim may still have a Los Angeles wrongful death claim, but it will need to be filed with uninsured motorist coverage (if any). If the victim, or, in some cases, a family member who she resides with, has uninsured motorist coverage, the uninsured motorist coverage may step in to take the place of the responsible driver. This only occurs if the driver is not found, if the driver is found but does not have insurance, or if he is found but does not have enough insurance and the value of the uninsured motorist coverage exceeds the liability coverage on the responsible party’s insurance.

Man Killed in San Bernardino Motorcycle Accident

January 27, 2011 | by Robert Walch

A high speed chase, involving a stolen pickup truck, has resulted in a motorcyclist getting killed in San Bernardino, California. The incident began when a man called police as he was following his car, which had been stolen.

Police followed the 2001 Ford F-150 pick up truck until it entered the wrong way onto the exit ramp of Interstate 215. Police chose to no longer follow the pickup truck due to the risks involved. However, the truck continued and hit a motorcycle, driven by a 57 year old man from Riverside, California, who was killed in this San Bernardino motorcycle accident.

The assailant, described as a 5’6″ Hispanic male, approximately 25 years old, with average build and a shaved head, fled the scene on foot, and was not caught by police.

It will have to be determined if there was more that police could have done to prevent this tragic San Bernardino wrongful death accident. In the past, we have discussed how high speed chases, of non-violent offenders, have resulted in very serious and catastrophic injuries to innocent bystanders. If at all possible, when police see a car acting erratically to evade them, a helicopter should be called in to watch overhead until the suspect stops, rather than exposing the public to this risk of harm.

New Years Car Crash Deaths Caused by Drunk Driver Fleeing Police

January 4, 2011 | by Robert Walch

In a tragic New Years Day Los Angeles car accident, two people were killed when their vehicle was hit by a drunk driver fleeing the police. Demetria Dorsey, and her husband, Kelvin Dorsey, were in their Infiniti, traveling South on Crenshaw, when they were struck by a Geo Prism, driven by Jorge Alberto Molina.

Molina, from Culver City, had allegedly sped through multiple red lights before colliding with the Dorsey’s Infiniti, causing the Infiniti to roll and hit a pole, killing both of its occupants. The Dorseys were driving home from a New Years party. Mr. Molina then fled on foot before collapsing and being arrested. Mr. Molina has been booked on two counts of murder and is being held on $1 million bail. The Los Angeles Police Department has said that Mr. Molina was driving while under the influence and that it was unclear if he knew that the police were chasing with him at the time of the Los Angeles auto collision.

Unfortunately, we see time and again innocent commuters or pedestrians in Los Angeles who are killed by drivers as a result of high speed pursuits. Here, Mr. Molina faces a Los Angeles wrongful death claim against him. We have previously proposed a re-thinking on when police should engage such pursuits, as the ends oftentimes do not justify the means. This allegedly drunk driver may have caused worse damage had he not been pursued, but more likely than not it was the LAPD vehicles which caused him to travel at high speeds and cause this collision. If the police had simply taken down his plates and watched with a helicopter overhead, without pursuing at high speeds on the ground, this tragedy might have been avoided.