GOLDLAW – West Palm Beach Personal Injury Lawyers, Car Accident, Slip & Fall – Law Offices of Craig Goldenfarb

Tag: Wrongful Death

  • Dwyer High School Honor Student Aden Williams, 14, Killed After Being Struck by SUV While Walking to Bus Stop

    Dwyer High School Honor Student Aden Williams, 14, Killed After Being Struck by SUV While Walking to Bus Stop

    On Wednesday morning, January 29, Dwyer High School student Aden Williams was walking to the bus stop when an SUV struck him, leaving the teen with serious injuries.

    Williams, 14, was an honor student and aspiring engineer. Courtney Newell, a family friend who helped organize a vigil held in his honor on Wednesday, February 5, said that he was loved by many.

    Police have not identified the driver, but say that a Ford Explorer struck Williams while he was walking to the bus stop, around 6:30 AM. The accident took place on the 3600 block of Congress Avenue, about a half-mile north of Blue Heron Boulevard. Williams was taken as a trauma patient to a West Palm Beach hospital, where he died several days later from his injuries.

    The Palm Beach County school district says grief counselors are always available to help students after a death that affects the school. Mental health professionals will continue to provide support for students and faculty as long as necessary.

    A GoFundMe has been set up to help Williams’ family with expenses.

    Unfortunately, Florida leads the nation in pedestrian deaths, and Williams is not the first child killed walking to a bus stop or waiting for a bus. Kids often wait for buses in the early morning hours, when there is less light and it’s more difficult for drivers to see. People driving to work at this time should be extra vigilant, particularly if they are driving through school zones or near bus stops. Driving slowly and paying attention to your surroundings helps reduce the risk of accidents.

  • FSU Student Natalie Nickchen Killed After Driver Runs Red Light

    Natalie Nickchen, a 19-year-old FSU student, died Thursday morning after being hit by a car in a pedestrian crosswalk.

    The accident happened on West Tennessee Street in Tallahassee. Tallahassee Police Department (TPD) officials say a driver, Ivey Green, 24, ran a red light and struck Nickchen, who was in the pedestrian crosswalk in the 1000 block of West Tennessee. Green will be issued “appropriate citations,” although the State Attorney’s office declined to file criminal charges.

    The FSU community was saddened by the news of Nickchen’s death.

    “The entire Florida State University family is deeply saddened by the loss of one of our students, Natalie Nickchen, in a tragic accident on Tennessee Street earlier today,” said FSU President John Thrasher in a statement. “Any time we lose a young person at the beginning of a lifetime of promise, it is heartbreaking and profound. Our prayers are with Natalie’s family and friends. I encourage anyone in our community struggling with this loss to reach out for assistance.”

    The university’s statement went on to say that FSU’s University Counseling Center is available at 644-TALK (24 hours a day/7 days a week.) Students also can walk in to Counseling anytime between 8 a.m. – 4 p.m. M-F without calling.

    Unfortunately, Florida is still the deadliest state for pedestrians, with 5,443 deaths in a ten-year span from 2008 to 2017. Orlando is the most dangerous city for pedestrians, with 656 deaths in that period. Older adults are more likely to be hit in a crosswalk or at an intersection than younger ones, although everyone is at risk.

  • Man Dies in West Palm Beach After Being Struck by Freight Train

    Man Dies in West Palm Beach After Being Struck by Freight Train

    On Tuesday, January 28, a pedestrian was killed after being struck by a freight train.

    West Palm Beach Police say the man was pronounced dead after an eastbound train hit him, at around 11 AM on the Florida East Coast (FEC) Railway track. The accident occurred near Conniston Road, just north of Southern Boulevard. Witnesses reported seeing the man walking near the tracks prior to the accident.

    Sadly, train accidents are not uncommon in Florida, or West Palm Beach. Florida is ranked sixth among states with the most railroad crossing accidents – 462 total reported railroad-related accidents between 2014 and 2018. Last year the Miami Herald reported that railroad crossing accidents, deaths, and injuries were on the rise.

    In December, an Associated Press story found FEC has had one death for every 160,000 miles during the past two years.

  • Two Arrested After Child Struck by Car and Dragged in Hit-and-Run Crash in Umatilla

    Two Arrested After Child Struck by Car and Dragged in Hit-and-Run Crash in Umatilla

    A 12-year-old child was seriously injured on Monday morning, January 21, while waiting for a school bus, and the hit-and-run driver is now in custody.

    Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) officials say that Lake County sheriff’s deputies responded to Thomas Boat Landing Road in Umatilla around 7:40 AM following reports of the hit-and-run crash. A witness told police that a 12-year-old child had been hit by a silver 2015 Chevrolet Malibu, after the car’s driver ran a stop sign and went off the road. The car crashed into the child, who “became lodged under (the vehicle) and was dragged a short distance.” Ultimately he was freed from the car and left to suffer with his injuries while the driver sped off.

    Fortunately, the driver of the bus the child was waiting for arrived in time to see the car and get a description of the driver. The bus driver also called for medical aid and stayed with the boy until help arrived. The child was then airlifted to a local hospital with serious injuries.

    Authorities later determined the car was driven by 19-year-old Christian Ames Messick of Leesburg. After an extensive land and air search, a K9 unit tracked Messick and 24-year-old Mariano Keano Taclay to an RV parked on private property near County Road 42. The property owner told authorities the RV should have been unoccupied. Eventually three people exited the RV, one of whom was a woman Messick and Taclay had been holding against her will. She told authorities they also dumped a bag of firearms into a nearby body of water, which they later recovered.

    Messick was charged with leaving the scene of a crash causing a serious injury and driving without a license. He and Taclay are also currently being charged with burglary and false imprisonment, with additional charges to follow regarding the firearms.

    Florida has one of the highest rates of hit-and-run crashes, and not every driver is caught. One study found that 2016 was the year with the highest number of fatal hit-and-run crashes with 2,049 deaths — a 60 percent increase since 2009. New Mexico, Louisiana, and Florida have the highest rates of deaths in these types of accidents. Drivers who do get arrested following a hit-and-run may also be liable for the victim’s injuries.

  • Billy Clark Davis of Deland Killed by Train at Railroad Crossing with No Stop Arm

    Billy Clark Davis of Deland Killed by Train at Railroad Crossing with No Stop Arm

    On Monday, January 20, Billy Clark Davis, 87, died after his vehicle was hit by a train.

    Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) troopers say the crash was reported around 1:15 AM at West Beresford Road and Alexander Drive, just west of Deland. Davis was driving a pickup truck and turned to try to cross the tracks. Unfortunately, his vehicle became stuck and the front of it was struck by a freight train, then dragged about 500 feet before the train could stop. Sadly, Davis was pronounced dead at the scene. Two people on board the train were unhurt.

    Troopers confirm this particular crossing doesn’t have a stop arm to prevent drivers from crossing when a train is near. There is some signage about the railroad crossing.

    Florida ranks number 6 among states with the highest number of deaths at railroad crossings. Between 2014 and 2018, the state saw more than 460 railway accidents, and about 16 percent resulted in fatalities. Another 25 percent caused injuries. The majority of fatal train crashes happened in South Florida, and were more common among the fast-moving Brightline trains.

    Slower-moving freight trains like the one that hit Clark’s car are generally less likely to be involved in fatal accidents. However, accidents are more likely to occur at crossings without stop arms. The US Department of Transportation (USDOT) has found that in some cases, fatal train accidents are caused by poor railroad maintenance, including malfunction or absence of cautionary devices like lights and stop arms to warn drivers of coming trains.

  • Harvey Bruner of Jacksonville Struck and Killed by Car on Blanding Boulevard

    Harvey Bruner of Jacksonville Struck and Killed by Car on Blanding Boulevard

    [vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Harvey Bruner, 54, of Jacksonville, was struck and killed in Clay County on Friday, January 17, while trying to cross a busy boulevard.

    Officials with Florida Highway Patrol (FHP), say Bruner was attempting to cross Blanding Boulevard in Clay County from the west to the east side. He was walking eastbound in the southbound lanes when a black Chevrolet HHR SUV driving southbound hit him. The front of the Chevrolet then came to a rest facing the southbound area, partly in the left and center lanes.

    Bruner was pronounced dead at the scene, and the Chevrolet driver was taken to the hospital with minor injuries.

    The top cities for pedestrian deaths in Florida

    Sadly, this is a common scenario in Florida, which leads the nation in pedestrian deaths. People in vehicles that hit pedestrians often suffer minor or no injuries at all, while the impact of a large, fast vehicle like an SUV can cause serious injury or death to a pedestrian.

    Nine of the 20 deadliest US cities for pedestrians are in Florida, with Orlando ranked as the least safe, and the Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach metropolis ranked No. 14 in the 2019 “Dangerous By Design” report.

    Between 2008 and 2017, the state saw 5,433 pedestrian deaths, for an annual average of 2.73 pedestrian deaths per 100,000 people, or a Pedestrian Danger Index (PDI) calculated as 182.0.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

  • Championship Rower Grace Rett Killed in Horrifying Van Accident in Vero Beach

    On Wednesday, January 15, a trip to rowing practice turned deadly for Grace Rett, 20, a championship rower from Boston’s College of the Holy Cross.

    Rett, an English and Psychology major, was dedicated to rowing, and even set a world record in December by rowing continually for 62 hours and 2 seconds. In January, the Holy Cross team traveled to Vero Beach for winter workouts, and on Wednesday morning they were headed for the water when the accident occurred.

    The twenty-two team members were traveling toward the Vero Beach Rowing Club in a two-van convoy with Rett in the front passenger seat of the lead van. Both vans pulled into a turning lane, and the first van turned into oncoming traffic for unknown reasons.

    Most of the impact was concentrated on the front passenger side of the van, where Rett was seated. Sadly, she suffered serious injuries from being crushed in the collision, which caused her to go into cardiac arrest and die.

    “Words cannot express how utterly heartbroken we are at the loss of our beloved Grace,” Rett’s family said in a statement. “A warm-hearted, kind, and gifted young woman, Grace lived every second of every day with a contagiously positive spirit that enriched the lives of everyone around her.”

    Twelve other people were injured in the accident, and several were listed in critical condition later that day.

    A long history of serious accidents at the intersection of Indian River Blvd

    Unfortunately, the Indian River Boulevard intersection where the crash occurred has a long history of serious accidents. In 2017 and 2018, there were more than 50 crashes near this intersection, according to data from the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. A 58-year-old bicyclist died in one of these accidents in February of 2018. Another 15 crashes injured people, some seriously.

    Large passenger vans like the one Rett and her teammates were riding in also have a poor safety record for college athletes. In 2006, the NCAA released a 65-page travel safety guide for universities that discussed longstanding issues with large passenger vans.

    “Many educational institutions have discontinued the use of these vans for transporting passengers, either removing them entirely from their fleets or restricting their use to carrying materials,” the guide says.

    It goes on to say that if these vans are used, they shouldn’t hold more than 10 passengers, and drivers should receive appropriate training. There were 12 people in the Rett’s van when the accident happened. Holy Cross’ transportation policy requires students and staff to pass a road test and driver training course before driving university-owned or -leased vehicles.

  • Shaunte Chambers and Angelesea Rock Killed, 2 Others Injured in Crash with Pickup Driver Who Fled Scene

    Shaunte Chambers and Angelesea Rock Killed, 2 Others Injured in Crash with Pickup Driver Who Fled Scene

    On Thursday, January 9, an early morning car crash on Colonial Drive in Orlando left Shaunte Chambers, 19, and Angelesea P. Rock, 20, dead, and two others injured.

    According to a police report, officers were called to the accident scene around 2:40 AM. Police Sgt. David Baker said that a Ford-F150 truck was driving erratically before it slammed into a Volkswagen Jetta. Chambers and Rock were pronounced dead at the scene. Two other women, Jada Fraser and Taylor Morgan, both 20, were injured, and were taken to a local hospital for treatment. All four women were riding in the Jetta.

    The Ford truck was found empty, and police called K-9 units and a helicopter to the scene to search for the escaped driver. Eventually they located a man believed to have been in the truck, hiding on the north side of the lake. He was taken to a hospital and listed in stable condition while authorities continue to investigate who was driving and the cause of the crash.

    Sgt. Baker reminds drivers that it’s important to always remain at the scene of an accident. “Staying on scene is definitely the best thing to do because, obviously, leaving will cause you to face felony charges and that sort of thing so it’s certainly not a good thing to do and it’s certainly not the right thing to do, either.”

    In 2018, there were 401,851 car crashes, resulting in 254,484 injuries and 3,150 fatalities in the state of Florida. About 5,797 of those involved a driver who was cited for reckless driving.

  • Jogger George Gage Struck and Killed By Impaired Pinch a Penny Delivery Driver in Tampa

    Jogger George Gage Struck and Killed By Impaired Pinch a Penny Delivery Driver in Tampa

    On Thursday, January 9, witnesses spotted a Pinch a Penny pool supply truck driving erratically and speeding down Bayshore Boulevard in Tampa, shortly before it struck jogger George Gage, 70.

    Gage was thrown into the water, and bystanders jumped in to help, holding his head above water until rescuers arrived and were able to lift him out of the water. Gage was rushed to a local hospital, where he later died of his injuries.

    “He was a faithful and active member of this church and he will be greatly missed,” Rev. Magrey deVega of Hyde Park United Methodist Church said in a statement. Friends remember Gage, a retired trust officer at Northern Trust, as a kind and generous person who often helped others in the community. He was married and had two children.

    Benjamin Douglas Ehas, 31, of Tampa, was identified as the driver of the Pinch a Penny truck. He was treated for injuries at a local hospital, then arrested on charges of DUI manslaughter and vehicular homicide. Ehas admitted that he drank whiskey and smoked marijuana prior to the crash, according to the arrest report.

    According to investigators, Ehas had a blood-alcohol content level of 0.234, almost three times the level at which Florida law presumes impairment, 0.08.

    Witnesses told police that the Pinch a Penny truck appeared to be going 60 or 70 MPH in a 35 MPH zone, and was also swerving in and out of oncoming traffic right before the collision.

    Unfortunately, Florida leads the country in pedestrian traffic accident deaths, and many of those involve an intoxicated driver. According to the Florida Uniform Traffic Citation Statistics, there were 43,899 DUI charges filed in 2017. Although the numbers have dropped off since 2012, intoxicated drivers continue to pose a danger to others, including pedestrians.

    Commercial vehicles accidents that cause fatalities often involve large semi-trucks, but any commercial vehicle can cause an accident if the driver is impaired or distracted. One Large Truck Crash Causation Study found that about 3 percent of large truck accidents involve a driver’s use of alcohol or illegal drugs. Many companies that hire commercial vehicle drivers conduct background checks and pre-employment drug screenings.

  • Theresa Gutierrez Killed, Husband Critically Injured by Driver Fleeing Police in Stolen Mercedes

    On Friday, January 3, Theresa Gutierrez, 28, died after the driver of a stolen Mercedes struck the car she was riding in.

    Miami-Dade Police officials say the tragic accident happened in Northwest Miami-Dade at an intersection near Seventh Avenue and 135th Street. Gutierrez’ husband, 28-year-old Luis Tirado, was driving their vehicle.

    A few minutes earlier, officers had spotted a stolen Mercedes Benz and attempted to pull it over. The driver fled from police, and the Mercedes crashed into the vehicle Tirado was driving near the intersection. Tirado was rushed to a local hospital, where he is currently in critical condition. Sadly, Gutierrez was pronounced dead at the scene.

    Police say the driver and passenger of the stolen car were arrested, and later taken to a hospital to be treated for their injuries.

    “We do want justice done for our little sister and her boyfriend ’cause she will never be back,” said Yasmin San Martin, Gutierrez’ sister.

    The family have set up a GoFundMe to pay for Gutierrez’ funeral and other related expenses.