An accident in Phoenix claimed the life of a pedestrian and left many people wondering what the driver of an SUV was doing in the build-up to the crash. The fatal pedestrian accident occurred at an intersection where a pedestrian using a walker was trying to cross the street. The 58-year-old pedestrian was crossing the street when he realized he had dropped something in the crosswalk. He turned around to go pick it up.
It was at this moment that a woman driving an SUV drove up and plowed right into him. The 58-year-old was taken to a hospital, but he did not survive the accident. The police say that the woman who was driving stayed at the scene after the wreck, but that she “failed to notice him or change direction.”
This quote makes it seem as though she was inattentive while driving, and, if true, that could mean many things. The woman could have been texting while driving. She could have been punching in an address on a GPS device. She could have been talking on the phone or having a conversation with someone in the car.
These are just a few examples of behaviors that distract a driver and take their focus off of the road. It will take some time before we know if the woman was distracted in any way, as an investigation is underway. However, if it is proven that the woman was distracted in the build-up to the crash, she could be liable for the wrongful death of the 58-year-old pedestrian.
Source: KTAR, “Pedestrian using walker killed in Phoenix accident,” Associated Press, April 10, 2014