PORT ST LUCIE, Fla. – A 66-year-old pedestrian was struck on Southwest Port St. Lucie Boulevard early on Wednesday morning March 24, 2021, and remains in critical condition as a result of the injuries sustained in the accident.
The accident happened around 6:45 AM where, according to police, the man was either standing near the left turn lane or in the street as the driver approached and struck him. The man may have been trying to cross the street at the time of the accident.
Police do not believe the driver is at fault.
The man, who is a Port St. Lucie resident, was rushed by ambulance to Lawnwood Regional Medical Center & Heart Institute in Fort Pierce and was last listed in critical condition according to Port St. Lucie police officials.
The man was thrown to the ground at the time of impact but the SUV that struck him did not pass over him or continue to drive off after the initial collision.
The accident took place near the Publix shopping center close to the corner at Southwest Tunis Avenue and Southwest Darwin Boulevard.
Investigators do not believe that the driver was at fault and are not pursuing charges at this point.
It’s important to understand who is at fault in a pedestrian accident. If the driver has enough time to react that would be deemed reasonable but fails to react, the driver could be held liable for the accident.
However, if the driver does not have enough time to react and if the pedestrian was acting negligently and breaking the law or the rules of the road which may have caused the accident, the pedestrian may be deemed at fault for the accident.
This is not to say that either the driver or the pedestrian, in this case, were at fault. We still do not have all the details of the accident and it is up to investigators and the Port St Lucie pedestrian accident attorney to make those judgments.
About the Author
Michael Feiner
Michael A. Feiner is a partner in the Fort Lauderdale office of Steinger, Greene & Feiner. Since being admitted to the Florida Bar in 2001, Michael has devoted his practice to representing plaintiffs throughout Florida in various tort and strict liability cases and has successfully litigated cases against national insurance companies, large public companies, and governmental agencies, resulting in tens of millions of dollars for his clients.
He has handled all types of personal injury and wrongful death cases on behalf of plaintiffs, including automobile negligence, premises liability, medical malpractice, product liability, dog bites, and sexual harassment. Michael’s product liability case against Microsoft, as well as his representation of victims of sexual harassment and abuse by physicians, has garnered him important media attention at both the local and national levels.
Michael is an experienced trial lawyer and successfully argued an appeal to the Fourth District Court of Appeal. In the reported decision Ortlieb v. Butts, 849 So.2d 1165 (Fla. 4th DCA 2003), Michael persuaded the Fourth District Court of Appeal that a directed verdict on liability was appropriate where the defendant did not rebut the presumption of negligence of a rear driver in a rear-end collision.
Michael Feiner
Michael A. Feiner is a partner in the Fort Lauderdale office of Steinger, Greene & Feiner. Since being admitted to the Florida Bar in 2001, Michael has devoted his practice to representing plaintiffs throughout Florida in various tort and strict liability cases and has successfully litigated cases against national insurance companies, large public companies, and governmental agencies, resulting in tens of millions of dollars for his clients. He has handled all types of personal injury and wrongful death cases on behalf of plaintiffs, including automobile negligence, premises liability, medical malpractice, product liability, dog bites, and sexual harassment. Michael’s product liability case against Microsoft, as well as his representation of victims of sexual harassment and abuse by physicians, has garnered him important media attention at both the local and national levels. Michael is an experienced trial lawyer and successfully argued an appeal to the Fourth District Court of Appeal. In the reported decision Ortlieb v. Butts, 849 So.2d 1165 (Fla. 4th DCA 2003), Michael persuaded the Fourth District Court of Appeal that a directed verdict on liability was appropriate where the defendant did not rebut the presumption of negligence of a rear driver in a rear-end collision.