Michigan Injury Lawyers Blog

We are frequently asked why a driver would flee the scene after striking a pedestrian on a busy city street--where there are sure to be witnesses. Our reflexive response is almost always: "Drunk driving".

And in the case of Vincent Thomas Alvaro (at left), 76, of Oakland Township, the evidence certainly seems to bear that out.

Mr. Alvaro was carrying load of wood flooring on his truck, when a sheet of the material dislodged and flew into the roadway. As Mr. Alvaro was retrieving the flooring, he was struck by an oncoming pick-up truck and killed. The driver fled the scene at a high rate of speed.

A lifelong Michigander, Mr. Alvaro was born in Detroit and raised in Birmingham and Royal Oak.

Because the incident happened in broad daylight and in full view of the motoring public, the standard excuse--"I thought I hit a deer"--will be completely untenable. Other clues pointing to drunk driving include the fact that striking a pedestrian who suddenly and unexpectedly darts out into the path of the driver's car is not necessarily a crime. Drunk driving, however, is always a criminal offense.

In the panicked mind of the fleeing drunk driver, the question isn't whether he will be apprehended, but when he will be apprehended. That is because what he desperately needs is time. Time to sober up before dealing with the police.

It was a tip that led Troy police to a truck matching description of the suspect vehicle.The truck is registered to a Sterling Heights man.The damage appeared to be consistent with the accident. But if police conclusively link the watchband that they found tangled in the windshield wiper to Mr. Alvaro, it is that item of evidence that will seal the negligent driver's fate.

All of which leaves the Alvaro family with little more than an empty chair at the dinner table and a personal injury claim against the truck driver and possibly others.

Casting a wide net and implicating all possible liable parties is the personal injury lawyer's top priority for obvious reasons. If the decedent's wife, Jeannette Alvaro, was financially dependent on her husband, the sudden income loss could mean financial ruin. If the negligent driver lacked insurance or carried only minimal coverage, Mrs. Alvaro may never receive adequate compensation.

Under a legal doctrine called vicarious liability, certain non-drivers may be financially liable for losses resulting from the Auburn Hills area fatal truck accident, as well. The owner liability statute, for example, provides that the title owner of a vehicle is responsible for the negligence of a permissive driver. Moreover, the negligence of a worker in the course of an employment related mission may be attributable to the employer.

Accidents like this (pedestrians in the highway) invariably trigger defense claims that the accident victim was responsible for his own injuries. Under former Michigan law, a legal doctrine called comparative negligence provided that, even if the injury victim was partially responsible for the incident, the victim could still recover compensation from the other negligent party--even if the victim himself was more than 50% responsible (subject to a monetary reduction commensurate with the degree of the victim's own unsafe conduct).

Several years ago, however, the insurance industry heavily lobbied our lawmakers in Lansing, and induced them to modify the doctrine of comparative negligence. Under the newer statute, a victim who is deemed to be more than 50% responsible for the incident, may receive no compensation whatsoever for his non-economic personal injuries.

Moreover, in the context of a personal injury trial, the judge reads an instruction to the jury which informs them that, if the victim is found to have violated a safety statute, the jury may infer negligence against that party. One such law that comes to mind is a statute that forbids walking on the highway.

All of which leads us to a prediction that this conflict will be fought by the Alvaro family's Southfield personal injury lawyers on the battlefield of the doctrine of comparative negligence.

Troy Crash Victim's Watch Found
On Truck, Detroit Free Press, January 20, 2011