Hit and Run - How to proceed?

hemacp · 2011-01-20 01:13:25

Hi all,

I got hit by an SUV today and the driver just took off without even stopping. It turns out it was a woman, supposedly drunk. Here's what happened:

I was approaching a traffic intersection. I was to the extreme-right of the right lane. So, this SUV hits me and I fall onto the pavement. The SUV just sped away. There was a gentleman behind this SUV who saw her hit me and started following her. Luckily, I got away with only a couple of bruises on my leg and arm, but my bike got jacked up. The rear wheel got bent and it doesn't freely move now. I called 911 and they sent a police officer. So, this gentleman who followed the woman managed to stop her. He said she was drunk and he noticed her driving crazily for a while before she hit me. She was supposedly totally wasted, and he managed to pull away the car-keys from her which he handed over to the police officer. I guess they managed to get hold of this woman. The officer took statements from this gentleman and me and gave me a case-number and said I was free to go and that I'll hear from them.

I should consider myself really really lucky that I just came out without any serious injury. Passers-by said I could have been run-over. I'm really shaken and my bike is screwed too. I got this bike just a month ago and now this happens. I was carrying a laptop in my backpack, and the casing broke when I fell down on the pavement. My laptop's wifi doesn't work too. My broken laptop, I didn't see until I came home, so it's not recorded with the police.

I don't want to press charges to get her punished or anything, but can I ask her to pay for the damage? I really don't want to give up biking just because of this incident. Its really sad that my first post on this forum has to be this :(

dougmc · 2011-01-20 11:27:22

Drunk? Hit and run? Screw her. Press charges. (Though most of her trouble isn't up to you -- the state is likely to prosecute her whether you press charges or not.)

As for asking her to pay for your damages, absolutely. Though even better would probably be to get her insurance information (if she has insurance) and file a claim with them. Once they get the police report, the statement from the gentleman -- I imagine they'll pay your damages without too much trouble based on what you've said here, and you may even get some money for your bruises (not a lot, but some.) You could get a lawyer, but so far -- I see no reason for you to do so.

And the gentleman who saw it all? You (and society in general) owe this guy, big time. If it wasn't for him, the woman would have gotten away, and you wouldn't even be sure who to go after.

rmonsees · 2011-01-20 11:29:55

I've been fortunate in my 16 years of cycling to have only one very minor mishap with an automobile, but in my opinion, you are trying to be way too nice. This woman was drunk, endangering herself and everyone around her, including you. You need to press charges, and do what you can to keep this woman off the streets in the future.

Regarding damages to your bike and yourself, my advice is to seek an attorney. If this woman has insurance, they should pay for your bike and your injuries, pain, and suffering. The insurance company is not your friend, and will try to low-ball the offer.

This is not an endorsement, but here is an attorney who is a cyclist, and does a lot of cases related to cyclist-auto collisions. I've seen him mentioned on many cycling forums, but have never dealt with him personally.

Law Office of Bradley Houston
1204 San Antonio Street, Ste. 203
Austin, Texas 78701
(512) 473-2130 voice
(512) 627-8343 mobile
(512) 473-2136 fax
www.BradHoustonLaw.com

tomwald · 2011-01-20 14:41:00

I agree with others' sentiment here about pressing charges. Do keep in mind that criminal charges for her are consequences that will help deter her from repeating her actions. She will likely drive drunk again, especially if she faces no consequences for her behavior this time, and there could be a fatality next time -- criminal charges will help prevent her from repeating her behavior. "Punishment" is only a part of what criminal charges are for.

I was going to mention Brad Houston and Lenore Shefman as local lawyers who cover bike-car collisions, and who are bicyclists themselves. Ron mentioned Brad above already, so here is Lenore's info:

Shefman Law Group
506 West 12th Street
Austin, Texas 78701
512-386-8117
http://cyclistlaw.com/

Either of them will probably be able to help you with what you need, but in case there are still remaining issues, you can contact me (not a lawyer) at the League of Bicycling Voters, 512-773-8775 or Tom at LOBV.org
http://lobv.org

MichaelBluejay · 2011-01-20 16:43:12

I think dougmc is optimistic that the state is likely to press charges no matter what the cyclist does. When I was hit & run'd and had impartial witnesses and a license plate, the police didn't want to take any action because I wasn't hurt. When a driver ran a red light and killed cyclist Ben Clough, the police ticked "Had been drinking" on the accident report, but didn't test the driver, didn't arrest her, and didn't even give her a ticket for running the red light. There are many more such cases, many of which are documented on this website. So if nothing happens to the driver, we shouldn't be surprised, though I hope we will be outraged.

Anyway, hemacp, I agree: You should definitely get a lawyer, and you should definitely press charges. You got lucky, but the next cyclist might not be. For all of the rest of us, as the victim you need to do your part to make sure she's prosecuted so she's less likely to kill someone else in the future. And even if it takes 20 convictions for the state to take her license away, let's get that count started now.

I got the "I've been hit, what should I do?" messages so often that I made a web page to answer that question. (It's listed in the menu at the top of this page, Justice > What to do if you're hit or harassed.) But it's very old and it's never been peer-reviewed. Let's use this time as an opportunity to make that page more helpful. How should it be changed?

hemacp · 2011-01-21 16:52:51

Many Thanks for your suggestions. I fully agree that the woman driving the SUV needs to be prosecuted, so that a similar incident doesn't happen again. But like MichaelBluejay pointed out, I too didn't receive any major injuries, so I am not sure the attorneys will have a concrete reason to fight for, but I'll try anyway.

As for the report, I haven't yet heard from the police. Any idea when I can expect a message from them? Should I get my bike repaired already, or do I have to wait until I hear from the police?

@dougmc: I was only barely able to thank the gentleman who pursued this woman when he gave his witness to the police officer. I was slightly dazed and couldn't think of anything else. As you pointed out, I really owe a lot to this person. Thanks!

@rmonsees and tomwald: Thanks for the contacts. I'll contact them, but as I said, there's not "much" damage my bike and I took, so I'm not sure.

I'll keep you guys posted with any updates.

MichaelBluejay · 2011-01-21 17:19:40

When should you expect to hear from the police? Seriously? Never. In my own case the police had no interest in pursuing it except that I had to press them repeatedly. In the end they claimed that they mailed the driver a ticket, but gave me no way to verify whether they actually really did. They couldn't understand why I wanted the driver prosecuted since I wasn't injured. If you want justice, you're going to have to make the effort.

You have damages: your laptop and your bike. That case might be too small for a lawyer to take, but you can try going through the driver's insurance company.

Again, for the community, how exactly should I change the "What to do if you're hit or harassed" page? It didn't seem to be of much help to this particular rider.

tomwald · 2011-01-21 17:37:19

Without a doubt, you should contact a lawyer who understands bike collisions and describe to them the basics of your case. If they've heard the basics of your case and are not interested in spending anymore time on it, they can tell you that. But you need to press the seven digits into your phone and press 'call'. Leave a voice message if you don't get their voice mail.

The same goes with follow-up from the police. CALL THEM. Call them the next chance you get, and then at least weekly, unless you set up a different schedule for regular follow-up. You should be able to talk with an officer about your case. Your persistence also lets the detective know that you are willing to help him/her out with the case as he/she processes it.

You do not need to be shy about asking for assistance from a lawyer and from the APD.

dougmc · 2011-01-23 15:03:10

The problem with getting an attorney is that they'll probably want 33% or so of whatever you collect. If it comes to that, then that's certainly the right thing to do, as 67% of something is better than 100% of nothing, but if she has insurance and the police report clearly says she's at fault -- they'll likely pay without much trouble, and you can handle that on your own.

Get an attorney if you need to, but make some efforts to handle things yourself first.

Now, if she has no insurance and won't pay you herself, or her insurance is screwing you over -- then by all means, get an attorney. But make some efforts to collect yourself first. (And really, threaten to get an attorney and see if that fixes the problems -- if not, then get one.)

As for the police not prosecuting hit and runs, that's pretty well known. But DWI? They generally take that pretty seriously nowadays.

Augenwinkel · 2011-01-23 16:21:31

While it is your responsibility to contact the police (not their responsibility to contact you), calling them to ask about the report is not enough. APD loses police reports. You need to go to the station and ask for it in person. If you can't get it within a month, you need to ask for the officer and the officer's sergeant. When I was hit by a car in 2009, I called countless times and went to the station in person 4 times, twice with my mother, before I got a report in my hand. It took 4 months.

dougmc · 2011-01-23 20:55:10

MichaelBluejay wrote:

Again, for the community, how exactly should I change the "What to do if you're hit or harassed" page? It didn't seem to be of much help to this particular rider.

Well, I'd suggest changing it to suggest at least making a token effort to handle things on your own. Explain how lawyers are expensive -- they may be worth it, but they may also be an unnecessary expense.

If somebody hits you and they don't deny what happened and have insurance -- it's foolish to get an attorney. Talk to their insurance, see if they'll pay. If so, and they pay a fair amount -- you win. Even with a hit and run or DWI, if the evidence is strongly on your side, their insurance is likely to settle rather than going to court (some are better than others, of course.)

If their insurance is screwing you around, or they don't have insurance and won't pay -- then it's time to get a lawyer.

As for not helping this particular rider, it seemed to cover their issue properly, aside from what I mentioned. Perhaps the original poster didn't read it? I'm not sure how you would make it more prominent or even if you'd want to.

MichaelBluejay · 2011-01-23 21:47:10

Thanks for the feedback! I edited the page.

hemacp · 2011-01-24 18:37:00

@dougmc and MichaelBluejay: It was my wrong, I didn't happen to look at the "What to do if hit or harassed?" page before I posted. I feel it is pretty complete, looking at what I experienced at the accident-spot. The police officers recorded my statement and took photos of my bruises and the bike. They gave me a case-number and said I'll hear from them, which I guess might not be really the case according to the majority of the posts here. If all bikers are aware of whats in this page, it'll save them a lot of confusion.

I'll go to the APD and get a copy of the collision report and decide how to proceed. The officer who was at the scene checked on his computer and told me the woman didn't have insurance on her SUV. I'm sorry I didn't mention this previously. Anyway, I can confirm this once I get the collision report.

I talked to Brad Houston, he's a really helpful person. He's suggested I should take photos of the bruises and the damages to my bike and keep them for my record. Supposedly, the police might not be able to share the photos they took, in case they're prosecuting the woman.

RightHooked · 2011-01-24 21:24:34

I am so sorry to read about your accident. Keep real good notes, who you talk to, get their Email address, do not think anyone is going to act in your best interest. I really hate to say it but your biggest hurdle you may have is the Protect and Serve guys in blue. In my humble opinion is a pain diary, it does not have to be long but it will help with the pain and suffering that might accompany your accident.

Bicycle Austin forum

#1 2011-01-20 01:13:25

Hit and Run - How to proceed?

#2 2011-01-20 11:27:22

Re: Hit and Run - How to proceed?

#3 2011-01-20 11:29:55

Re: Hit and Run - How to proceed?

#4 2011-01-20 14:41:00

Re: Hit and Run - How to proceed?

#5 2011-01-20 16:43:12

Re: Hit and Run - How to proceed?

#6 2011-01-21 16:52:51

Re: Hit and Run - How to proceed?

#7 2011-01-21 17:19:40

Re: Hit and Run - How to proceed?

#8 2011-01-21 17:37:19

Re: Hit and Run - How to proceed?

#9 2011-01-23 15:03:10

Re: Hit and Run - How to proceed?

#10 2011-01-23 16:21:31

Re: Hit and Run - How to proceed?

#11 2011-01-23 20:55:10

Re: Hit and Run - How to proceed?

#12 2011-01-23 21:47:10

Re: Hit and Run - How to proceed?

#13 2011-01-24 18:37:00

Re: Hit and Run - How to proceed?

#14 2011-01-24 21:24:34

Re: Hit and Run - How to proceed?

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