Driver Kills Senior on One of NYC’s Most Dangerous Streets, and NYPD Blames the Victim
Flatbush Avenue at Avenue M. Photo: Google Maps
A driver killed a senior on Flatbush Avenue in Brooklyn Sunday night. Though the investigation remains open, NYPD told the media the victim was at fault.
The crash occurred at around 10:45 p.m. The victim, an 83-year-old man whose name had not been released as of this afternoon, was crossing Flatbush east to west at Avenue M when he was hit by the driver of a Toyota sedan, who was southbound on Flatbush, NYPD told Streetsblog.
Avenue M meets Flatbush at a T intersection with no traffic signals and unmarked crosswalks across Flatbush. The NYPD office of public information (DCPI) couldn’t say where the victim was in relation to the crosswalks, yet police sources told the Post he wasn't where he was supposed to be:
The man suffered severe head and body trauma and was taken to Beth Israel Hospital, where he died.
He was not in the crosswalk when he was struck, cops said.
The 54-year-old driver remained on scene and was not immediately charged with a crime.
The Post published a photo of the vehicle's dented and cracked windshield, an indication of a high-speed collision. DCPI had no information on how fast the driver was going.
The police spokesperson emphasized that DCPI had only preliminary information and that the investigation was ongoing. But that didn't stop NYPD sources from publicly absolving the driver after the crash when speaking to the Post, which labeled the elderly victim a "jaywalker" in its headline.
Flatbush Avenue is Brooklyn’s most dangerous street for walking, according to DOT's pedestrian safety action plan for Brooklyn, with 23 crashes resulting in death or severe injury to pedestrians between 2009 and 2013.
DOT singled out Flatbush for Vision Zero safety improvements, but the Avenue M crossing is not one of the intersections the city has chosen to alter.
Sunday's fatal collision occurred in the 63rd Precinct, and in the City Council district represented by Jumaane Williams. Williams has called for traffic-calming measures on Flatbush Avenue, but more recently criticized the city's 25 mph speed limit as "impractical" and "arbitrary."
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