Streetsblog New York City

Friday, August 14, 2009 21 Comments

The Weekly Carnage

by Brad Aaron on August 14, 2009

The Weekly Carnage is a Friday round-up of motor vehicle mayhem across the metro region. For more on the origins and purpose of this column, please read About the Weekly Carnage.

Witnesses say cab driver Akim Saiful Alam was speeding and talking on his cell phone when he ran down 8-year-old Axel Pablo on E. 112th Street in Harlem, then tried to flee the scene. NYPD found no reason to charge him. Photo: Daily News

Fatal Crashes (12 Killed This Week, 117 This Year*, 12 Drivers Charged**)

Manhattan: Cab Driver on Phone Kills Boy, 8; NYPD: Driver "Broke No Laws" (Post, News, WCBS)
Related: Perhaps Police Only Talked to This Witness (1010 WINS)
Related: Post Tells Bloomberg, Kelly, Daus to Stop the Carnage
Queens: Cyclist Killed by Man Fleeing Police; Charges Filed (Streetsblog, Newsday)
Brooklyn: Driver Hits 91-Year-Old Ped, Cars, Apartment Building; "No Criminality Suspected" (News)
Staten Island: Former Mafia Figure Killed in Motorcycle Crash (Post)
Staten Island: Motorcyclist Killed in Collision With Livery Cab (SI Advance)
Palisades Park, NJ: SUV Thief Kills Self, Woman Sitting at Bus Stop (Star-Ledger)
Mahopac, NY: Teen Driver, High on Pot, Slams Into Tree, Killing Passenger (LoHud)
Yonkers: Pedestrian Killed in I-87 Hit-and-Run (LoHud)
Bedford, NY: "Inattentive" Pregnant Mother in One-Car Crash, Killing 21-Month-Old Son (LoHud)
Kings Park, LI: Man Killed, Daughters Hurt in Collision With Repeat Reckless Driver (Newsday)
Norwalk, CT: Motorcyclist Killed, Passenger Injured in Collision With Car (CT Post)

Photo: Daily News

Injuries, Arrests and Property Damage

Queens: Pedestrian Almost Run Over, Twice, Then Charged With Criminal Mischief (Streetsblog)
Queens: Teen Drag Race Crash Injures 12-Year-Old Passenger; Drivers Charged (News, Newsday)
Manhattan: 12 Injured When Van Carrying Disabled Teens Hits SUV (News)
75-Year-Old Drives Wrong Way Across Tappan Zee Bridge (Gothamist)
Yonkers: SUV Driver Hits, Injures Invisible Pedestrian; No Charges (LoHud)
Pearl River, NY: Three Teens Injured When SUV Plows Into Lake (LoHud)
Peekskill, NY: At Least Three Hospitalized After Two-Car Crash (LoHud)
Hampton Bays, LI: DWI Driver Hits, Seriously Injures Three Pedestrians (Newsday)
Hampton Bays, LI: Woman Hits Teen Cyclist, Charged With DWI (Newsday)
Stratford, CT: 13-Year-Old Cyclist Hit, Suffers Serious Injuries (CT Post)
Fairfield, CT: Speeding Driver Hits Stone Wall, Flips Escalade (CT Post)
New Milford, CT: Driver Rounds Curve Too Fast, Rolls Car; Two Injured (CT Post)
Hempstead, LI: 19-Year-Old Arrested for Torching Boyfriend's Car (Newsday)
East Rutherford, NJ: One-Car Crash Leaves Two Critical, One on the Run (Star-Ledger)
Harding, NJ: Driver Loses Control, Leaves Interstate, Hits Tree; Car Bursts Into Flames (NJ.com)
Bedminster, NJ: Man Caught After Crashing Into On-Call Ambulance, Fleeing Scene (Star-Ledger)

Following Up

Bronx: Family of Manhattan Woman Killed in Upstate Crash Sues Bus Company (News)
Investigation Continues in Wrong-Way Taconic Crash (Newsday)
Related: Letter to the Editor: Driving Under the Influence Is No "Accident" (LoHud)
Southeast, NY: Fund Raiser Held for Family of Mother-Daughter Peds Killed by DWI Driver (LoHud)
New Haven, CT: Two Plead Guilty in Fleeing Scene of Fatal 2008 Motorcycle Crash (CT Post)
Shelton, CT: Man Charged With Negligent Homicide in 2008 Motorcyclist Death Surrenders (CT Post)
Stratford, CT: Driver Hit by Cop Who Had Seizure Wants Car Fixed (CT Post)
Essex, NJ: Six Months Later, Police Plead for Help in Fatal Hit-and-Run (Star-Ledger)

Photo: Examiner

Out of Town

West Park, NY: Pedestrian From Brooklyn Struck and Killed; No Charges Filed (Poughkeepsie Jrnl)
Dinuba, CA: Police Defend Chase That Ended in Crash That Killed Eight (AP, KGPE)
Seminole, OK: Driver Charged With Misdemeanor Negligent Homicide in Cyclist Death (AP)
Bridgeville, DE: 11-Year-Old Boy on a Bike Hit and Killed by Pickup Driver; No Charges Expected (AP)
Lewisville, TX: Road Worker Killed When Tire Comes Off Tanker Truck (AP)
Morrilton, AR: Mom Who Crashed Into Lake, Killing Her Three Kids, Said to Have Been Drinking (AP)
Memphis, TN: Four Dead in I-40 Crash (AP)
Ripley, OK: 13-Year-Old Flips SUV, Dies; School Super Says Child Drivers "Not That Unusual" (AP)
Washington, DC: Witnesses Pull Victims From Mangled Vehicles After Collision (CNN [Video])
Atlanta, GA: Three Cars, Six Motorcycles in One Crash; Eight Hurt (AP)
Owosso, MI: Prosecutor Drives Drunk, Crashes, Leaves Scene; Has No Plans to Resign (AP)
Veracruz, Mexico: Bishop Loses Control of SUV, Runs Over Six, Killing One (AP)
Baltimore, MD: Michael Phelps and His Escalade in Two-Car Crash; One Injured (AP)
Fort Wayne, IN: Two Killed in Christian Rock Band Tour Bus Collision (AP)
Miami, FL: NFL Suspends Donte' Stallworth for a Year; Self-Pitying Tweets Ensue (Star-Ledger)
Related: Reaction Belies Claims of Contrition (Fifth Down)
Related: Judge Permits Stallworth to Train While Under House Arrest (AP)

Trends

Gov. Paterson Wants to Get Tough on Drunk Drivers -- Who Have Kids in the Car (News, City Room)
Drunk Driving Arrests on the Rise in Lower Hudson Valley (LoHud)
CT Post Readers: Reckless Drivers a "Menace"
Columnist Calls for Cyclist-Motorist Truce; No Mention of Rage-Induced Gunplay (CT Post)

* Since the week of June 8
** Drivers charged for deaths since the week of June 8, based on latest available reports

21 Comments

Last comment by Andy Trafford Leave a comment »

Adam

After reading the Post comments, I can't help but think most of the people are actually on our side this time only because the driver was Bangladeshi. If the driver were white they probably would blame the victim. I think the driver should be charged with murder and sentenced to jail for a long time, but to make racist threats? That's a no-no.

August 14, 2009 at 11:36 am Link # 1
PaulCJr

The cabbie runs down a boy, tries to flee the scene, and the NYCPD says he didn't violate any laws. I can't understand this. Even if we wasn't talking on the cell phone as the report says, how is he not at fault. The little boy and his mother had the light to cross he street. This is freaking unbelievable. If I run down somebody in the streets of NYC with a car, I can get off scot free. If I bike in NYC and impede traffic, I get roughed up by the cops and false charges applied to me. I'm beyond shocked. This is just maddening.

August 14, 2009 at 11:45 am Link # 2
PaulCJr

If anyones racist biases are at play here, same on you!!!!! What this man did was horrific and his ethnicity should not be a factor. If the driver was white or any other ethnicity it would not a bit effect my believe that he should go to jail.

August 14, 2009 at 11:49 am Link # 3
paco

the weekly carnage is a sad post every time, but thank you streetsblog for putting it up anyway. it's very necessary and I hope it doesn't just reach your regular readers, but also the elected officials that have the power to actually do something about vehicular violence.

August 14, 2009 at 11:49 am Link # 4
David_K

There are witnesses who say that the driver was talking on his cell phone at the time when he killed the boy. So at the very least, he was violating the law w/respect to drving and cell phones. Why no charges? Do the police need more than witnesses? Can they use cell phone records to determine whether a person was talking while driving? Shouldn't this be standard in all accidents (not just ones where little kids get killed)?

August 14, 2009 at 11:50 am Link # 5
ddartley

This is the story I'm going to email to all the DA candidates and I will use their individual responses to help me choose which to support.

(So far it's Aborn, because he took the admirable step of writing an article about traffic justice, but regardless, even if they don't respond, they should all read this story.)

August 14, 2009 at 11:58 am Link # 6
ddartley

I was talking about the cabbie killing the boy, sorry.

August 14, 2009 at 11:59 am Link # 7
Larry Littlefield

Seeing this all in one place is almost enough to terrify me into never driving again. It certainly makes me more careful.

How easy is it to be "inattentive" for a second or two while driving?

Lean over to roll the window up or down or change the radio station? Look in the rear view mirror? Look down at the speedometer to make sure you aren't speeding?

And if you don't know where you are going, look for street signs, building addresses, store signs?

Reach for the coffee in the cupholder?

I'm not even talking about doing something criminally negligent, like using a communications devise.

August 14, 2009 at 12:06 pm Link # 8
ddartley

Every case like this cabbie killing the boy needs to be examined thoroughly and by accident reconstruction experts so that they can determine whether, even if it's decided that the boy did "appear from nowhere," the cabbie was indeed going 40 or 50mph. That way, if it's clear that he was going 40 or 50, that speeding can be used to charge him with at least something. If that starts to happen more often, and gets in the news--maybe that might stop some drivers from speeding so often.

I know I'm rambling but this story has made absolutely sick.

August 14, 2009 at 12:13 pm Link # 9
PaulCJr

The police report said that they checked his phone records and it said no call had taken place at the time he hit the child. Now of course who really knows. I have to agree with you Larry. I to am more careful when I drive in the city after reading all this reports.

August 14, 2009 at 12:15 pm Link # 10
Ian Dutton

Oh come on, stop pretending to be surprised. Outraged? OK. But surprised?

Every week here on Streetsblog we're treated to the latest saga in the epic adventure, "...And The Driver Was Not Charged." It's the punchline at the end of every pedestrian fatality story in the Times, Post, etc.

Here we have the modern "dog bites man." It's "driver kills man, and child, and others, and walks away with an 'ooops.'" Kids in Chinatown? My bad! A 3-year-old and aunt vs. Hummer? Hope there wasn't a scratch - the kid could have been charged...if he had survived! Well-known helicopter pilot at his birthday party when a cab ricochets onto the sidewalk? Who says 60 mph is bad on the east side?!?

August 14, 2009 at 12:19 pm Link # 11
Eric McClure

Ian's right. In order for charges to be filed, one has to do something really heinous, like rest one's elbow on another person's car to keep from fainting.

August 14, 2009 at 12:47 pm Link # 12
Eric McClure

"Everyone is saying the car hit him, but it really looked like he ran into the car," the witness, giving his name as Joe, said.

Yeah, Joe, clearly a suicide. Cabbie ought to sue the family for damaging his hack, or maybe the cops can charge Axel's mom as an accomplice.

August 14, 2009 at 12:51 pm Link # 13
Larry Littlefield

(Even if it's decided that the boy did "appear from nowhere," the cabbie was indeed going 40 or 50mph.)

Corners are killers for kids. When I was teaching my kids to walk by themselves, what I was most afraid of is that while crossing with the walk sign they would be hit from behind by a driver whipping around the corner, just after stepping out from the curb. Particularly if you had a large vehicle parked at or near the corner, obscuring the driver's view of children shorter than it.

It is entirely possible that the driver was "merely" whipping around the corner at 30 rather than 40 or 50, but at a corner that is clearly too much.

How fast can you go and still stop on a dime? About 10 or 15 I'd sat. That's all somone should go when turning a corner on a city street. Heck, they make drivers on highways using EZ-Pass slow to 5 to 15 mph to protect toll takers walking between booths.

August 14, 2009 at 12:53 pm Link # 14
paco

@ Larry, I fully agree that whipping around corners is deadly and drivers simply can't stop fast enough. That's where I think neckdowns/ daylighting can help immensely. A more restricted space often makes drivers slow down even before seeing peds crossing. How come neckdowns aren't at EVERY intersection?

August 14, 2009 at 1:16 pm Link # 15
aliostuni

This is exactly why we as a city cannot rely on individual street users to respect the rights of other users. Traffic calming measures must be instituted; wide avenues must be narrowed with the inclusion of protected bike lanes and plantings so that people of all physical abilities can cross safely. Placing blame on individuals, or even policing and prosecuting them, will not achieve what we need: no more traffic-related fatalities in the city. Nothing short of total redesign of our streets will resolve what is a crisis on the order of magnitude of the crime-related fatalities of the crack era.

August 14, 2009 at 1:26 pm Link # 16
fpteditors

fyi...

looking for an informative, civil discussion on land-use, autos, and transit? The post "no more cars/not more cars" originally hi-lited by Streetsblog has generated a 3-day discussion in the comments.
http://greatergreaterwashington.org/post.cgi?id=3192

August 14, 2009 at 2:05 pm Link # 17
fpteditors

If you want to hear from a victim of an automobile collision, the blog below belongs to one.

http://catmeowpublictransit.blogspot.com/

August 14, 2009 at 2:17 pm Link # 18
Ian Turner

If taxis are all now GPS-equipped, does that mean we can do automated speed enforcement across the fleet? Surely the standard privacy arguments do not apply here.

August 14, 2009 at 3:19 pm Link # 19
Glenn McAnanama

I just received this from Brian Levinson in Jose Serrano's office:

Dear all:
The family of the 8-year-old boy killed in yesterday's tragic accident on Lexington Ave. does not have the money to pay for his funeral. If you or someone you know would like to help, please communicate with Officer Priscilla Bianchi in the Community Affairs Unit of the 23rd Precinct. About $1500 in total is still needed in funeral costs and transportation of his body.

priscilla.bianchi@nypd.org
cell: 914 469 2791
office: 212-860-6430

-Brian
--
Brian Levinson
Chief of Staff
NYS Senator José M. Serrano
(212) 828-5829

August 14, 2009 at 4:06 pm Link # 20
Andy Trafford

Please forward to Mr Akim Saiful Alam

August 14, 2009 at 4:27 pm Link # 21