Driving while celebrity - Venus Williams exonerated by video (legal, lawyers, highway)
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Driving while celebrity - Venus Williams exonerated by video (but still legally at fault?).
When news first hit that Venus was in a fatal accident, killing an old man, the media and commenters were quick to blame her for recklessly careening through a red, the lawyers swept in, and the widow launched a million dollar wrongful death lawsuit. Based on initial reports she seemed guilty as sin and trying to cover up with her story. Thank god for video.
The new video shows her black SUV pass the camera and stop at a red, proceed on a short green into the intersection, but stopped by a car turning left in front of her, then proceeding but not clearing the intersection before the light turned red. The older couple, coming in from the right, anticipated the light turning green for them and did not slow down.
It should at least spread blame and reduce any judgement amount.
Well, that video shows her stopped by a left turner who would have also been on a green then she resumes to cross the divided intersection to be hit by a car blitzing through on a very early green if judging by traffic not even entering the intersection yet going in the opposite direction to the elderly couple.
I does look like the elderly couple either didn't see the red or patterned their approach to hit the "very virgin" green. They hit Venus' car on the rear passenger quarter panel with no visible attempt to slow down when her car must have been clearly visible as both moving and in the intersection. A coroner should test further if the old guy suffered some kind of medical event that tuned him out before even entering the intersection.
Glad you posted this. Venus seems very upset by the crash, glad to hear she is not totally at fault. You have to look to cross traffic always. I try to remember to look for unexpected traffic at a signal, especially if the light has just changed.
This collision emphasizes my worry over left turns. Avoid them when you can. Our way out of here involves an uncontrolled intersection with a four lane divided highway just down the road from a traffic signal. Lots of our neighbors routinely make a left across both lanes to head north. I always head up our street to enter that highway at a signal.
Watch car wreck videos on youtube and you'll see why.
"No left turn, not always the law, always a good idea"
The plaintiff's lawyer still claims that Venus was at fault:
Quote:
Michael Steinger, the lawyer for the Barons, said it supported their position.
'The video released by the Palm Beach Gardens Police Department continues to support the fact that Ms. Williams remained in the intersection at a red light, violating the Barson’s right of way,' Steinger said in a statement.
'There is nothing that disputes Ms. Williams' was in the intersection on a red light, and the witnesses clearly confirm the Barsons' had a green light and lawfully entered the intersection.'
Then again, a simple google search on this lawyer shows he has a questionable history:
There's more information to process, but it appears to me, that short of getting Scottie (from Star Trek) to initiate a transporter beam, there wasn't anything Venus could do to avoid being struck by the car.
Quote:
Originally Posted by katzpaw
Driving while celebrity - Venus Williams exonerated by video (but still legally at fault?).
When news first hit that Venus was in a fatal accident, killing an old man, the media and commenters were quick to blame her for recklessly careening through a red, the lawyers swept in, and the widow launched a million dollar wrongful death lawsuit. Based on initial reports she seemed guilty as sin and trying to cover up with her story. Thank god for video.
The new video shows her black SUV pass the camera and stop at a red, proceed on a short green into the intersection, but stopped by a car turning left in front of her, then proceeding but not clearing the intersection before the light turned red. The older couple, coming in from the right, anticipated the light turning green for them and did not slow down.
It should at least spread blame and reduce any judgement amount.
In my state she would not be at fault at all. Cars already in the intersection when a light changes have the right of way. That is probably true in most places as it is common sense.
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