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Serious Accident involving Pedestrians in Line with Larger Trend

2 pedestrians crossing the street

Two pedestrians were recently injured, one fatally, in a Los Angeles County car accident. Pedestrian deaths are one of the fastest-growing forms of accident, a trend that many experts believe is attributable to smartphone use by drivers. Read on to learn more about this disturbing trend, and contact a Palmdale personal injury lawyer after a car or pedestrian accident in the Antelope Valley.

Pedestrians hit while in marked crosswalk

The recent accident occurred at the intersection of Vineland and Pacific Avenues in Baldwin Park. At approximately 10:00 pm on Monday, December 18, 2017, a 17-year-old girl and a male companion were walking in the marked crosswalk at the intersection when they were struck by an oncoming car. The girl was declared dead at the scene of the accident. Her companion was taken to a local hospital with serious injuries. The driver, who was not believed to be intoxicated by drugs or alcohol at the time of the crash, was arrested on charges of vehicular manslaughter. The causes of the accident are still being investigated.

Pedestrian accidents on the rise

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), there has been a sharp increase in pedestrian traffic fatalities in recent years. Between 2015 and 2016, the number of pedestrian deaths rose by 9% when an additional 492 people were killed while walking along the road. Pedestrian deaths have risen by almost 22% since 2014. More broadly, so-called “outside the vehicle” deaths have also been rising, a group which includes bicyclists, motorcyclists, and pedestrians, and now accounts for about 1/3 of all roadway deaths.

The NHTSA categorized only 448 of 2016’s 37,461 fatal accidents as being caused by mobile phone distraction. However, many experts believe that this is a dramatic underestimation of the role of cell phone use in the increasing roadway fatality rate. Rising numbers of outside-the-vehicle deaths are seen as one sign of the impact of mobile phone use, as drivers are less likely to notice smaller objects like bikes or pedestrians if they’re only looking up from their phones briefly. Victims of accidents caused by distracted drivers can use evidence of this distraction as proof of negligence in a personal injury lawsuit against the driver.

If you’ve been injured in a pedestrian accident in southern California, get help in pursuing a claim for damages against the at-fault driver by contacting the seasoned, effective, and knowledgeable Antelope Valley auto accident attorney Paul Kistler for a consultation, in Palmdale at 661-206-6990.

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