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Posted on 05/28/2013 10:26:13 AM PDT by Behind Liberal Lines
Syracuse, NY -- A state trooper speeding to town court crashed his patrol car into a man walking across a road in Central Square in 2009, breaking three of the man's bones.
A state police investigation blamed the victim. A judge recently called that conclusion "incredulous."
State Court of Claims Nicholas Midey found the state was completely responsible for injuries suffered by Lawrence Perkins in November 2009 when Trooper Thomas Gallery crashed his car into him on Route 11.
A state police investigation determined the primary cause was "pedestrian error" because there was no crosswalk where Perkins walked across the road, Midey wrote.
The judge's dismay was evident during the trial when Trooper Brett Yorgey, who investigated the crash, testified about the conclusion he'd reached.
The judge interrupted Yorgey's testimony, asking for clarification. Was the trooper not at fault for speeding? Midey asked.
"The difference is a pedestrian has an opportunity to decide not to continue," Yorgey testified, according to a transcript of the trial.
"And the operator of a vehicle has an obligation not to speed, correct?" Midey asked."I mean, you issue traffic tickets all the time, correct?"
In a decision issued in February, the judge reiterated that dismay.
"During the trial... the Court found such a conclusion incredulous, and continues to do so at this time," the decision said. "The Court finds absolutely no basis on which to attribute any comparative negligence to" Perkins.
Regardless of whether there's a crosswalk, under state law a motorist has a duty to "keep a reasonably vigilant lookout for pedestrians, to sound his horn... and to operate his vehicle with reasonable care to avoid colliding with a pedestrian on the roadway," the judge wrote.
Gallery didn't have his siren or emergency lights going, and wasn't responding to an emergency, the judge said.
It was the second time in a year that Midey criticized a state police investigation of a trooper's conduct. Last year, the judge awarded $1 million to a man whom a trooper assaulted without justification. The judge found state police did an inadequate investigation into the man's complaint of police brutality.
In the 2009 pedestrian crash, Midey found the state 100 percent liable for the injuries Perkins suffered Nov. 24, 2009. Perkins, now 58, suffered a broken wrist, ankle and foot in the crash, according to a 2009 story in The Post-Standard.
A trial will be held before Midey to determine the amount the state must pay.
Gallery was driving at least 12 mph -- and as much as 30 mph -- over the 30-mph speed limit in the village, across from Reymore Chevrolet, where Perkins was a car salesman, Midey's decision said.
Perkins was walking to his car and was almost across the road about 8 p.m. when Gallery hit him with the side of his trooper's car, Midey wrote.
Gallery testified that he first saw Perkins in the road when the trooper was between 100 and 200 feet away. But Gallery didn't blow his horn or hit his brakes because he thought Perkins had time to get out of the road, the decision said.
Gallery was on his way to Constantia Town Court for an arrest warrant when he crashed into Perkins. The trooper estimated he was going 45 mph in a 30 mph zone.
Gallery testified that the road was wet from rain and that lighting from the car dealership and streetlights caused a glare that affected his vision, the decision said. Perkins and a witness said the road was dry.
Midey found that Gallery's failure to operate his car at a "reasonable and prudent speed" and to do nothing more than observe Perkins when the trooper first spotted Perkins made the state liable.
"Without even considering Trooper Gallery's excessive speed, it is abundantly clear to this court that Trooper Gallery failed to operate his vehicle with reasonable care, and failed to take appropriate steps to avoid this collision with (Perkins), even after he first observed him on the roadway," Midey wrote.
Gallery tried to avoid Perkins just before the collision by swerving to the right, but Perkins ran toward the shoulder at the same time to try to get out of the way, the decision said. After striking Perkins near the fog line, Gallery lost control of his car and it spun into the oncoming lane, crashing into a vehicle with three people inside, the decision said.
Gallery, reached at his home, declined to comment.
The state Attorney General's Office has decided not to appeal Midey's ruling, spokeswoman Michelle Hook said.
Perkins, of Parish, still suffers the effects of the injuries, he said in a brief phone interview last month. He's represented by Syracuse lawyer Robert Bennett, who declined to comment.
I call it incredible.
Wow. Just wow. And this is New York State where the people are supposed to disarm themselves and trust the police to protect them.
So who protects the people from the police?
The State Police operate at the discretion and wish of the governor of the state. Rot from the head first in this case. When you have corruption in the state house of NY, is it any wonder that the state police would follow suit?
Does anyone know if the trooper can be personally sued? And why is he not criminally liable for something, like reckless driving, endangerment, etc.?
Psychological projection. Clearly it's the judge himself who was incredulous.
The local version of Holder investigating Holder.
As a former, cops are well known as the worst drivers on the road, except for drunks and six year olds.
Does anyone know if the trooper can be personally sued? ....IF he did it on purpose with homicide/ assault on his mind. Police/ school busses,
DOT trucks, etc., if involved in accidents, charge damages to the private owner’s cars. It happened to my son in law whose car was demolished by the Chief of Police in our town who was pulling in to park behind him. He hit the brake but actually hit the accelerator. He was a friend of mine and told me he’d never find anyone guilty again of doing the same thing. He felt truly bad about having cited the dozens of people who used that excuse.
I hit a pedestrian about 8 years ago, 100’ from a crosswalk. I was very carefull how I answered questions and described the scene. But what I had going for me was the guy had run across the street and through a row of cars stopped for a left turn light.
My description included odd mind perceptions like, “The first thing that hit my mind was how did he get out of his car without opening his door.
The guy tried to sue me twice by contacting my insurance company. All I had to do was receive two emails from them saying that if I was ever contacted by him to forward it to them. They sent copies to me of their reply to him, in essence telling him to pound sand. Cars really DO have the right of way on roads. Pedestrians venture out outside the constraints of a crosswalk at their own risk.
However, if a solid case can be made for the driver speeding or otherwise breaking the law, it’s a different story. It’s almost like the sailboat vs powerboat thing on the water.
Based on what is written here I find the lack of pedestrian “comparative negligence “ as astonishing as the previous ruling that stated the trooper had no negligence.
I guess this means that any pedestrian not in a crosswalk is fair game in New York.
They do have that reputation. I heard a lady ask a (retired) Texas Highway Patrol Officer why there was never a cop around when some idiot came weaving through traffic and past her at 30 mph over the speed limit. He replied "That's him, he's just off duty."
The word ‘fired’ did not appear in this article. Strange.
I hate to say it, but I was the nemesis of the Street Department. I was always watching down alleys, streets, behind businesses and must have hit 100 parking meters, signs and cars. Caught a LOT of burglars though.
“I guess this means that any pedestrian not in a crosswalk is fair game in New York”
Not at all. But some 40 years ago when I was learning to drive I was taught that pedestrians had the right of way but if a pedestrian say came out behind parked cars or otherwise illegally crossed the street there was also negligence on the part of that same pedestrian. I believe that is the reason for most jaywalking laws that are in effect in every state.
Thank you. I know it’s a losing battle but thanks anyway
My sister in law is involved in something similar. A police officer’s son was driving his father’s truck. He rear ended my sister in law’s brand new car, which had under 9,000 miles. The insurance will cover the $30,000 repair bill but she will be left with a car that is devalued $4,000+ by being in such a huge accident. She was merging into a highway, through a construction zone for which she had slowed, and this guy, who never slowed, plowed into the back end of her car. Her car will be cut apart, it will take a month to fix, and have a new back end put on. When the police arrived at the accident scene they refused to give the kid a ticket. My sis in law want to turn in her new car, get the additional $4,000 in recompense, and get another new car as she is leery of the damage her Prius sustained, and if that $8,000 battery took a hit, but because the kid was not ticketed, and they still refuse to ticket the kid, it will involve her having to take court action.
Something like this happened across the street from where I used to live here in Maine.
A Maine state trooper was driving his patrol car above the speed limit on a two-lane road. He was speeding, but he was NOT answering a call. A woman was backing out of her driveway, and the state trooper crashed into her.
The woman was killed, and the trooper got off scot-free.
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