Child Injured in Hit-and-Run

 Posted on June 26, 2013 in Personal Injury

Patrick T. Washington, 36, is being held on $75,000 bail "after he was alleged to have struck an 8-year-old girl with his car… and then driven away," according to the chtribune. Washington, according to witnesses, was driving west and speeding when he struck the child near South Bishop Street. "A 42-year-old woman was walking with her children when she saw the car race from a green light and strike the girl, who was walking across the street with other children and an adult," according to the Tribune. Washington did not stop, or even slow down all that much, despite the fact that the child rolled over his car several times and eventually fell onto his windshield. The girl then fell from the windshield to the street and landed on her head, according to the witness. According to court records and reported in the Tribune, "police heading east on 47th hear the collision and saw Washington pass them in a Geo Prism at a high speed." Washington was almost immediately pulled over, and several witnesses identified him as the driver responsible for hitting the girl and fleeing. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) National Pedestrian Crash Report, not surprisingly, "about two-thirds of pedestrian fatalities were in urban areas." The shocking statistic is that pedestrians are more likely to be killed in non-speeding conditions than in speeding conditions, "based on fatality per crash," according to the NHTSA, though the higher posted speed limit the higher the chance for a pedestrian fatality. The vast majority of pedestrian-crash incidents involve just the car and the pedestrian, not another car—like the incident on South Bishop Street this June. No information was given as to whether or not Washington was under the influence when the incident occurred, but according to the NHTSA, "the majority of drivers in fatal pedestrian crashes… were not drinking." About 20 percent of pedestrians involved in a hit and run don't survive the ordeal. If you or someone you know has been involved in an accident such as this, don't go through it alone. Contact a dedicated Chicago-area accident attorney today.