In Georgia, “every driver of a vehicle shall exercise due care to avoid colliding with any pedestrian upon any roadway.” O.C.G.A. § 40-6-93. Other Georgia statutes pertaining to vehicular-pedestrian safety include: O.C.G.A. §§ 40-6-22, 40-6-91, 40-6-92, and 40-6-144. In general, “the driver of a car has no right to assume that the road ahead of him is clear, but he must keep a vigilant lookout ahead for pedestrians on the road.” Lorig v. Brunson, 84 Ga. App. 558, 562, 66 S.E.2d 268, 271 (1951).
Recently, in our neighboring state of Florida, a jury awarded $10 million to the parents of a man killed by a recreational vehicle as he walked beside the road. The pedestrian, Jacob Branen, was walking to work when he was struck by a 24-foot Winnebego. The driver of the RV was an employee of the La Mesa RV Center in Sanford, Florida and was shuttling the RV from the Daytona International Speedway back to the dealership. Although the driver claimed the pedestrian wandered into the road at the last minute, the plaintiffs’ attorneys proved that this was false. In reality, the RV struck the innocent pedestrian when the driver drifted onto the shoulder of the road. In this verdict, not only was justice served for the family that lost their son, but Jacob’s name was cleared of any fault for the incident. The negligent driver of the RV was deemed 100% responsible for the pedestrian’s wrongful death.
Experienced Atlanta Personal Injury Law Firm
With over 30 years of combined experience, the team at North Atlanta Injury Law assists individuals and families catastrophically injured or killed in all types of injury incidents, including Motor Vehicle Negligence, Products Liability, Premises Liability, Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect, Car Accidents, DUI Accidents, Drunk Driving Wrecks, Collisions Due to Texting-and-Driving, Hit-and-Run Accidents, Trucking Accidents, Highway Crashes, Catastrophic Injuries, Slip-and-Falls, Trip-and-Falls, Dangerous Conditions, Negligent or Inadequate Security, Defective Products, Failure to Warn, Liability Insurance Claims, Insurance Bad Faith, Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist (UM) Claims, and other negligence matters.
North Atlanta Injury Law represents personal injury and wrongful death victims and their families throughout Georgia, including in the cities of Acworth, Alpharetta, Atlanta, Augusta, Buford, Canton, Chamblee, Chattahoochee Hills, Clarkston, College Park, Columbus, Decatur, Doraville, Dunwoody, East Point, Fairburn, Forest Park, Franklinton, Hapeville, Johns Creek, Jonesboro, Kennesaw, Lake City, Lawrenceville, Lithonia, Lizella, Lovejoy, Mableton, Macon, Marietta, Milton, Morrow, Mountain Park, Norcross, Palmetto, Payne, Pine Lake, Powder Springs, Riverdale, Roswell, Savannah, Sandy Springs, Smyrna, Sofkee, Stone Mountain, Tucker, Union City, Walden, and Woodstock, Georgia.
Call (770) 988-4000 or text (404) 477-HELP (4357) for free and confidential advice.