Most pedestrian accidents occur in the crosswalk. In a crosswalk, the pedestrian has protected status. Typically the cause of such an accident is an inattentive driver.
The Law
There are several Virginia statutes that deal with pedestrians. Va. Code § 46.2-923 says that pedestrians shall cross at crosswalks where possible. At some intersections there is no marked crosswalk. However crossing at an intersection is likewise something that puts the pedestrian into protected status. The thrust of the law of course is that pedestrians need protection. Motorists are called upon indeed to protect them.
If the pedestrian is a minor, then the motorist is alerted to be aware that children do unpredictable things. Therefore for a motorist to claim that they didn’t expect the child to dart out in front of them may not be much of a defense. Children, due to their age, do impulsive things.
Pedestrian Accident Tips in Virginia
Virginia is a contributory negligence state. As such if there is fault on the part of the pedestrian that contributed to the accident, the pedestrian may not be allowed to recover.
That principle is a tough one and it is embodied in Virginia Jury Instructions that are read to the jury during the course of pedestrian accident trials.
Pedestrian Accident Tips in Washington, D.C.
In the District of Columbia, the common law has been modified a bit. No longer is contributory negligence in a pedestrian accident case a bar to recovery. Rather in regards to pedestrians, DC has modified the law and adopted what is called “comparative negligence”.
Investigation of the Accident
As is true with any accident or serious injury, prompt investigation is important. Typically as a pedestrian who was struck by a vehicle, you’re not going to be in a position to take photographs. You should however either get back to the scene or have someone get back to the scene as promptly as possible to take photographs of the area. All potential CCTV and other video-type cameras need to be identified so that evidence can be preserved. Likewise the construction of the roadway at the point of the accident needs to be clearly marked in the event there is any construction or changes in the layout of the streets in that area after the crash.
Consult With a Personal Injury Lawyer in the DMV Area for Your Pedestrian Accident Case
Also for more info on pedestrian accidents see the Wikipedia pages. Also see the post on this site dealing with pedestrian accident issues.
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