Pearland Pedestrian Accident Lawyer
Today’s motor vehicles have advanced safety features, like engineering improvements and sophisticated airbags, which protect people during collisions. Nevertheless, the vehicle collision fatality rate is at a near record high. Vulnerable pedestrians are even worse off. These victims have nothing to protect them during a collision. As a result, they bear the entire force of an oncoming car or truck. Usually, that vehicle is barreling toward them at almost maximum speed.
Henrietta Ezeoke, an experienced Pearland pedestrian accident lawyer, routinely handles these matters in Brazoria County and nearby jurisdictions. As a result, our professional team knows all the written and unwritten rules of procedure and evidence in all these different courts. So, your valuable injury claim isn’t a training exercise for an inexperienced lawyer. Instead, we know what it takes to put together a winning case and obtain maximum compensation for your serious injuries.
Crosswalk Accidents
A few pedestrian accidents occur when the victim is inside a marked crosswalk and crossing the street on a green light. These incidents are especially common if a tortfeasor (negligent driver) is turning right and a pedestrian is in the crosswalk to the right. Since most drivers only look to the left when they turn right, they often don’t see pedestrians in these cases, until it’s too late.
If the victim is in a crosswalk but not on green, the pedestrian still has the right of way in many cases. Texas law typically requires motorists to yield to pedestrians in these situations.
Non-Crosswalk Accidents
The vast majority of pedestrian accidents occur outside marked crosswalks and in non-intersections. These cases usually involve more serious injuries and some additional legal complexities.
The fatality rate is much higher in such cases. At impact speeds below 25mph, the pedestrian death rate is under 10 percent. At impact speeds above 55mph, the pedestrian death rate is over 90 percent. Even if the victim survives, catastrophic injuries, like head injuries and severe broken bones, are often inevitable.
Additional legal complexities in these cases include the sudden emergency defense. This legal doctrine excuses negligent driving if the tortfeasor reasonably reacts to a sudden emergency.
The first prong of this defense is usually present. After they strike pedestrians, most drivers pull over, help injured victims if they can, and wait for emergency responders to arrive.
The second prong is usually not present. In this context, a “sudden emergency” is a completely unanticipated event, like a hood fly-up or a sudden lightning strike. A jaywalking pedestrian isn’t like these things. Instead, a jaywalking pedestrian is an everyday hazard, like a large pothole or a stalled car. The duty of reasonable care requires drivers to be prepared for such emergencies and adjust to them. So, the defense usually doesn’t apply in non-crosswalk accidents.
Compensation in these matters usually includes money for economic losses, such as medical bills, and noneconomic losses, such as pain and suffering. A Pearland pedestrian accident lawyer can also obtain additional punitive damages, in some extreme cases.
Work With a Hard-Hitting Brazoria County Pedestrian Accident Lawyer
Injury victims are entitled to substantial compensation. For a free consultation with an experienced pedestrian accident lawyer in Pearland, contact the Henrietta Ezeoke Law Firm, PLLC. You have a limited amount of time to act.
