Carnage

Another Truck Driver Fatally Backs Over Another Pedestrian — And is Not Charged

A senior citizen was killed by a truck driver who backed over him on First Avenue on Tuesday morning — the second such incident in the same day and the second time the driver was not initially charged.

By Gersh Kuntzman

11:19 PM EDT on May 21, 2019

Another Truck Driver Fatally Backs Over Another Pedestrian — And is Not Charged

File photo: Gersh Kuntzman

H0urs after a private garbage truck backed over a motorcyclist in Queens, killing one passenger and injuring another, cops say the unidentified driver of a box truck backed over 76-year-old James Buzzell.

“A preliminary investigation reveals that a 39-year-old male operating a 2019 Freightliner truck was attempting to park in the parking lane and struck a 76-year-old male attempting to cross E. 16th Street,” police said. The New York Post and the Daily News both reported that the truck driver was backing up into a space on First Avenue.

The driver was not arrested.

Fatalities are up nearly 21 percent on New York City roadways through May 19 this year, with 70 people killed, up from 58 over the same period last year, according to police statistics.

Gersh Kuntzman

Tabloid legend Gersh Kuntzman has been with New York newspapers since 1989, including stints at the New York Daily News, the Post, the Brooklyn Paper and even a cup of coffee with the Times. He's also the writer and producer of "Murder at the Food Coop," which was a hit at the NYC Fringe Festival in 2016, and “SUV: The Musical” in 2007. He also writes the Cycle of Rage column, which is archived here.