Skip to Content
Streetsblog New York City home
Streetsblog New York City home
Log In
Carnage

NYPD and the Press Parrot Driver’s Account of Crash That Killed Lisa Julian

Yesterday's fatal East Village crash is another example of how NYPD and the press blame deceased pedestrians and cyclists based mostly on the word of the drivers who killed them.

"Woman, 47, crossing against light in NoHo struck by car, killed on Thursday," read the Daily News headline. But the only evidence presented that Lisa Julian was crossing against the light came from Oliver Parris, who hit her with an SUV as she crossed Third Avenue at St. Marks Place at around 6:30 a.m.

Lisa Julian. Photo via New York Post
Lisa Julian. Photo via New York Post
Lisa Julian. Photo via New York Post

Here's Parris, as quoted by the Daily News:

"I was trying to swerve from her and I couldn't do it in time," said Parris, who said that Julian was crossing against the light. Parris was on his way home from his job as a newspaper deliveryman at the time of the accident.

"She was walking," he said. "I don't think she was paying attention."

And the Post:

"She was crossing against the light. I had a green light," he said sadly.

"I tried to avoid her. I swerved."

Julian was pronounced dead at Beth Israel hospital. "She was a loving, upbeat, and interesting person," Alexander Rubinstein, the victim's boyfriend, told the Post. "She was very happy. It’s tough to talk about her right now."

Reporters for the Daily News, the Post, and DNAinfo take care to note that Parris was upset, and that he did not flee the scene. These details cast Parris in a sympathetic light, and are offered in lieu of critical analysis. Not only do reporters accept Parris's word that it was Julian who disregarded the signal, they don't question whether Parris himself was "paying attention," though state law requires motorists to exercise due care to avoid running people over.

Assuming that Julian did cross against the signal raises other issues. If reports are correct that Parris was driving straight ahead, why didn't he see Julian in the street in front of him? How close did he get before he saw her? Why did he have to swerve in the first place? This information is critical to determining how the crash occurred. While it may be too early to expect answers to all these questions, it's also premature to accept the driver's account as definitive.

Though data consistently show drivers are usually at fault in crashes that injure and kill NYC pedestrians, NYPD and the press are quick to assign responsibility to those who can't speak for themselves. NYPD blamed cyclists Rasha Shamoon and Stefanos Tsigrimanis for their own deaths based largely on the drivers' version of events. Shamoon was vindicated by a civil jury, which found the motorist almost completely culpable for the collision that took her life. Investigators didn’t visit the Tsigrimanis crash scene for 46 days, but still concluded he ran a stop sign based on the recollections of two drivers, including the one who struck Tsigrimanis, even though both drivers admitted they did not see him until the moment of impact.

Parris was not immediately charged by police or Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance, and if tradition holds, he won't be. As far as the public knows, Lisa Julian was one more pedestrian who died because she failed to look out for an unwitting motorist.

This fatal crash occurred in the City Council district represented by Rosie Mendez, and in the 9th Precinct, where as of February officers had ticketed two drivers for speeding in 2014.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog New York City

Friday Headlines: Trump’s Revenge Tour Now Includes a Stop at Penn Station

U.S. DOT Secretary Sean Duffy is so eager to own the libs at the MTA that he's now taken himself hostage. Plus other news.

April 18, 2025

Exclusive: Cops Writing 15% of Their Red Light Tix to Cyclists, Who are Just 2% of Road Users

We received data from a Freedom of Information Law request showing that the NYPD is intent on writing red-light tickets to the lightest, slowest-moving vehicles instead of doubling-down on enforcement against 3,000-pound-plus killing machines.

April 18, 2025

OPINION: DOT’s Argument Against Universal Daylighting Has a Fatal Flaw

Hydrant zones and bus stops are not a suitable stand-in for universal daylighting — yet DOT is using them to argue against safety, our contributors write.

April 18, 2025

Helicopter Deaths, Fast and Slow

Choppers harm us. Suddenly but also steadily.

April 17, 2025

The Dave Colon Challenge: Brad Lander Has Fought The Battles

The City Comptroller and would-be mayor becomes the first candidate to take Streetsblog's quadrennial challenge.

April 17, 2025
See all posts