Articles Posted in Pedestrian Accidents

Uber has made what some may consider to be a very smart business decision, by settling the wrongful death claim for the family of the pedestrian who was struck by the Uber autonomous vehicle on March 18, 2018. According to CNN, the family hired an attorney and made a settlement with Uber, so that parties could avoid a possible wrongful death lawsuit.

Uber has not commented on the wrongful death claim against them and the family’s attorney basically only said that the matter has been resolved. Understandably, the family of the wrongful death victim deserves to have its privacy. Terms of the settlement have not been disclosed, but we can assume that the family agreed to keep everything confidential, so as not to set a precedent against Uber.  Continue Reading

An Uber self-driving autonomous vehicle tragically caused the wrongful death of a pedestrian on Sunday. According to CNN, the Uber wrongful death accident happened in Tempe, Arizona, where Uber has been testing its autonomous vehicle technology. This particular accident involved a Volvo XC90 SUV, which struck a pedestrian.

The Uber pedestrian accident occurred when Elaine Herzberg, a pedestrian who was walking her bike across the street, was struck and killed by the Uber SUV. Ms. Herzberg was 49 years old and passed away due to the impact with the SUV. Preliminary reports indicate that the SUV appeared to be going about 40 miles per hour in an area where the speed limit was 35 miles per hour.  Continue Reading

A Lake Elsinore man, David Loperena, turned himself in to Riverside County Police in connection with a hit and run collision that killed a 10-year-old boy. NBC News reported that 10-year-old Antonio Ochoa was crossing the street in a crosswalk near his home in Lake Elsinore with his mother and sister. The driver of a red truck ran a stop sign and hit Antonio, carrying his body 25 yards down the road. Officers attempted to search for surveillance video of the red truck in the area following the accident, but were unsuccessful.

Investigators arrested Loperena, the alleged driver, after he turned himself in for fleeing from the scene of the wrongful death pedestrian accident.  Tragically, there are many serious hit and run accidents throughout California that involve the wrongful death of pedestrians. A moment of negligence or recklessness can lead to the premature death of an unsuspecting pedestrian. Continue Reading

George Johnson, a 91 year old man, who was evacuated from his retirement community due to the Montecito mudslides, tragically died when he was hit by a car being driven by a drunk driver. According to the Independent, the driver of the vehicle, Nicholas Hart, who had two prior DUIs in the last three years, was driving on a suspended license and his blood alcohol content was more than three times the legal limit of .08.

Mr. Johnson was crossing the street in a crosswalk, at the intersection of State Street and Micheltorena Street, when he was struck by Mr. Hart, a 26 year old man from Goleta. The Santa Barbara wrongful death accident occurred on January 23, 2018 and Mr. Hart is being held on one million dollars bail, for the second degree murder charge. Continue Reading

Justin Lavelle, a 23 year old man from West Hollywood, was killed on the 110 Freeway in Long Beach, California, when he was struck by a hit and run driver. Details of the Long Beach wrongful death incident are not exactly clear at the moment, but Amy Lavelle, Justin’s mother, said Justin called her and told her he was taking a Lyft to Long Beach.

According to ABC 7 News, Justin then called his mom from the freeway and said that he had been pepper sprayed. Justin was screaming and the call eventually became disconnected. Some time thereafter, Justin was struck by another vehicle on the freeway and he passed away as a result of the impact.  Continue Reading

A man was hit by a car in Van Nuys on Sunday and unfortunately he passed away as a result of the impact. The Van Nuys pedestrian accident occurred at about two o-clock in the morning on Sunday, when a man, Obdulio Castaneda, was crossing the street and was hit by a car.

According to the Daily News, the Van Nuys car accident happened on Vanowen Street, near Kester Avenue. It has been reported that the man was crossing outside of the crosswalk when he was struck by the car.  Continue Reading

In a matter of seconds, Luis Hernandez lost both his young sons in a Los Angeles wrongful death accident. An SUV driven by a rookie Los Angeles sheriff’s deputy crashed into two vehicles while responding to a call. The crash caused the SUV to veer on to the sidewalk where the Hernandez family was walking. According to The Los Angeles Patch, “Jose Luis Hernandez, 7, and his 9-year-old brother, Marco Antonio Hernandez, were killed and their mother was critically hurt.”

Mr. Hernandez has now filed a civil lawsuit against Los Angeles County alleging negligence and wrongful death. The suit argues that the deputy was driving at high speeds but “was not in the process of responding to an emergency call, was not in the immediate pursuit of an actual or suspected violator of the law and did not have (her) sirens and/or lights activated.” Additionally, Mr. Hernandez argues the deputy should not have been allowed to drive before completing her training.

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The San Diego Union Tribune reports that on Friday, June 2, at around 6:30 p.m., the driver of a Jeep Grand Cherokee jumped onto the sidewalk of Melrose Drive and crashed right into a couple out for their evening jog. Nanglee Vang—the father of five children ranging from toddlers to teens and a refugee from Southeast Asia—died at the scene of this California pedestrian accident. His wrongful death came just one day before his 41st birthday. His wife, 34 years old, was hospitalized with critical injuries.

Attorney Robert Bruce stated that, based on the circumstances of the accident, the other driver must have been traveling incredibly fast. A witness to the San Diego wrongful death accident stated that the Cherokee flipped several times before ramming into a light pole. Once the Cherokee stopped moving, the witness ran to the vehicle and held the driver’s hand until authorities arrived. The driver, who had to be cut out from his car and who also suffered serious injuries, was identified as Abraham Juarez Perea, aged 24.

Perea was charged with drunken driving and gross vehicular manslaughter. The Superior Court Judge ordered him to be jailed in lieu of $750,000 bail. On Tuesday, Perea pleaded not guilty.

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A woman driving a blue 2000 BMW X5 was traveling north on Beach Boulevard on April 27, 2017, around 4:00 in the morning, when she hit a 55-year-old man in a tragic Huntington Beach pedestrian accident. The man had been walking on the east sidewalk of Beach Boulevard, north of Edinger Avenue before striking the pedestrian, the woman’s SUV first hit a light pole, an electrical box, and a traffic signal light.

According to CBS News, an ambulance transported the man to UCI Medical Center, and he was pronounced dead at the hospital. According to Huntington police, the 34-year-old female driver, who remained at the scene after the accident, was arrested under suspicion of DUI.

Currently, Huntington Beach police are continuing their investigation of the wrongful death accident. If law enforcement finds that the driver had been under the influence, or was at fault for another reason, the victim’s family would be able to file a wrongful death suit against the driver of the SUV. The family of the victim should contact a California wrongful death attorney to discuss the details of the case and determine whether it would be possible to seek compensation for the wrongful death of their loved one.

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