Downtown Miami pedestrian struck by car while crossing the street

Author: Attorney Jason Macri

A Downtown Miami man was struck by a car while crossing the street during heavy traffic. The man had just finished paying his cell phone bill and was crossing the street when the driver of a car, who appeared to be distracted by his cell phone, struck the man at approximately 10 miles per hour. The impact knocked the pedestrian to the ground, causing him to fracture his right arm. 911 was called and EMS arrived to the scene shortly thereafter. Emergency technicians placed the man on a stretcher and brought him to the hospital. ER physicians at the hospital x-rayed his arm and determined that he suffered a displaced fracture which would require surgery. Surgery was done that day in the ER to repair his fracture. Screws and plates were used to secure the fracture. The man was discharged from the hospital that day.

Downtown Miami man gets visited by police while in the hospital

Still in a daze from having undergone anesthesia, the man is visited by police while in his hospital bed. The police explain that they have spoken to the driver of the vehicle and have determined that the driver was not at fault for the accident. With no further explanation, the police hand the man a case card and leave the hospital. Confused by the exchange, the man called the attorneys at the Law Office of Dell and Schaefer. Our lawyers immediately began to investigate the case. It became clear that the police had conducted a poor investigation. Traffic was heavy at the time of this accident and even the Defendant characterized traffic as “Bumper to bumper.” Surely, the Defendant should have had enough time to see our client crossing the street in front of his car and should have been aware enough to avoid striking our client. Though police had not noted that the Defendant was using his cell phone at the time, our client recalled seeing the Defendant texting on his phone prior to impact. This explained by the Defendant did not see our client before striking him.

Dell and Schaefer demands the policy limits

Unwilling to accept any amount below the policy limits, our attorneys threatened to file a lawsuit. Though the insurance company initially took the position that their insured was not negligent, they quickly changed their tune and tendered their driver’s limits. Our client was able to pay reasonable costs toward his medical bills and receive compensation for his injuries. Though he preferred to have never been injured, he reported feeling content that the matter was put behind him.