Traffic Justice
Streetsblog Basics
Will Vance Victory Translate to Tougher Stance on Traffic Crime?
The office of Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance scored a significant victory last week, earning a homicide conviction in the case of a driver who killed a pedestrian in East Harlem nine years ago. But the circumstances of the crash, and their striking similarity to a 2011 fatality that resulted in a slap-on-the-wrist plea bargain, raise questions about how city prosecutors handle most pedestrian deaths.
January 19, 2012
Family of Mathieu Lefevre Sues NYPD for Withholding Crash Information
The family of Mathieu Lefevre has filed a lawsuit against the NYPD for refusing to release information related to the hit-and-run collision that killed the 30-year-old Brooklyn cyclist last October.
January 4, 2012
Do the Math: NYPD’s Blame-the-Victim Routine Doesn’t Add Up
Time after time, when a person loses his or her life while walking or biking in the city, the narrative unfolds according to script. Pedestrian or cyclist killed. Driver remained at the scene. No charges filed. Not only is it rare to hear of a driver held to even the minimum standard of care by police and prosecutors, more often than not NYPD would have the public believe that if anyone is to blame, it's the victim.
December 14, 2011
How to Hold NYPD Accountable for Abuse of Traffic Violence Victims
It isn't often that stories of traffic justice denied make the pages of New York Times, but the case of Mathieu Lefevre got the attention of Jim Dwyer, whose article in today's paper highlights NYPD ineptitude and provides further details of the inhumane treatment suffered by the Lefevre family at the hands of the 90th Precinct.
December 7, 2011
The Negligent Driver’s Best Defense: “I Didn’t See Him”
A 57-year-old Bronx man was struck and killed by a school bus driver on Tuesday.
December 7, 2011
Unlicensed Driver Who Backed Over and Killed Yolanda Casal Fined $500
For at least the second time this year, an unlicensed driver will be punished with no more than a token fine for killing a Manhattan pedestrian.On June 30, Yolanda Casal, 78, and her 41-year-old daughter Anais Emmanuel were crossing Amsterdam Avenue near West 98th Street when Edwin Carrasco, 38, of Paterson, New Jersey, drove his Ford Explorer into them while backing up in pursuit of a parking spot. Casal was later pronounced dead at St. Luke’s Hospital; Emmanuel was hospitalized with injuries.
November 11, 2011
Jury Applies No Penalty to Speeding Driver For Killing Cyclist Jake McDonaugh
A Brooklyn jury has found defendant Michael Oxley not guilty of criminally negligent homicide in the 2010 death of Jake McDonaugh, the Post reports.
October 28, 2011
Leaving the Scene of a Fatal Crash Now Legal in New York City
Time was, all a driver had to do to get away with killing someone with a car in New York City was prove sobriety and stay at the scene. But given the outcome of two recent cases it seems that, at least when the victim is a cyclist, police and prosecutors are flexible on the latter requirement.
October 27, 2011