A Queens senior citizen was killed by a driver as he walked — in a crosswalk — in a residential portion of Jamaica, police said on Friday.
The 85-year-old pedestrian, whose name was not immediately released, was crossing 89th Avenue from north to south at around 5:35 p.m. on Tuesday when the 58-year-old Jeep driver barreled into him as he attempted to make a left from 170th Street onto 89th Avenue.
The driver was not arrested. Cops declined to provide basic information, including whether the driver was speeding, distracted or listening to loud music. Police said the NYPD's investigation "is ongoing."
At the very least, striking a pedestrian in a crosswalk seems to meet the definition of the lowest-level charge in the police summons book: failure to exercise due care. Yet officers rarely issue such tickets, except in combination with other offenses, such as if the driver had been drinking, law enforcement officials have long said.
Pedestrian deaths are up by double-digit percentages this year. Through Monday, 79 pedestrians had been killed in New York, up 16 percent from the 68 who had been killed over the same period last year, according to Department of Transportation figures. Twenty one cyclists have also been killed on the roads so far this year, up from 10 in the entirety of 2018.
The 27th City Council district — the area of eastern Queens where the pedestrian was killed this week — is one of the most dangerous places in the city. In calendar year 2018, there were 5,089 crashes, injuring 42 cyclists, 224 pedestrians and 1,447 motorists, with two pedestrians and four drivers killed.
By comparison, the neighboring 23rd district had 4,243 total crashes last year. And the neighboring 24th districtr had 4,424 crashes.
The 27th district is represented by Daneek Miller.
