Intoxicated Pedestrian Struck on Lee Highway

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by ARLnow.com September 19, 2012 at 2:30 pm 5,053 22 Comments

A man was struck by a car on Lee Highway last night after attempting to cross the busy road mid-block.

Police say they received a call for a pedestrian struck on the 5100 block of Lee Highway at 9:12 last night (Tuesday). The victim suffered a head injury and was unconscious when medics arrived. He was transported to Inova Fairfax Hospital, where he remains in fair condition, according to Arlington County police spokesman Dustin Sternbeck.

An investigation determined that the man was intoxicated and was attempting to cross to the north side of Lee Highway mid-block when he was struck by a westbound vehicle in the right lane, according to Sternbeck. The adult female driver of the vehicle remained on scene and was “very cooperative with the accident investigation,” he said.

“The pedestrian was found at fault and no charges will be brought against either party,” said Sternbeck.

File photo

Ashton Heights

Why no charges for the pedestrian? That poor women driver must have got the scare of her life.
- Tomtom
  
  they should charge him with intox in public, disorderly, jaywalkingg, etc.
  - Cakes
    
    They didn’t. Let it go. Pretty sure he got the worst of it.
  - MC 703
    
    Agreed with Cakes. As long as he pays for repairs to her vehicle.
- JimPB
  
  Agreed. Charge and pursue civil liability for damage to driver’s car and for driver’s psychological trauma.
  - happycyclist
    
    do we get damages for psych trauma in a traffic incident? can all the cyclists who’ve been harrassed by drivers while cycling legally, get damages?
- Wilbur
  
  You are going to charge a person with jaywalking…. when the state refuses to provide safe cross walks across Lee Hwy. that stretch is filled with (a) cross walks that are perilous (Lee and Lorcom) or (z) stretches where there are no cross walks.
  
  The fault, as is so common in our current predicament, is that the infrastructure is no match for the traffic that it is supporting – and the govt – here the state as Lee Hwy is owned by the state – is indifferent. Arlco has upgraded the roads that it can – but the state refuses to improve Lee Hwy – leading to repeated accidents.
Captain Pup McPuppo

striking drunk bro with moving vehicle, 50 points.
at night, 10 points.
female on male, 10 points.
- JamesE
  
  Being drunk at 9:12 pm on a Tuesday, 100 points
Regis

End.
Mike Hunt

who pays for the car damage? pedestrian?
- Mike
  
  Presumably the driver’s insurance company pay’s for the damage to the car, right?
  Whether the insurance company decides to pursue the pedestrian for reimbursement is up to them, but unless the pedestrian was a drunken Kennedy or Bush, they probably won’t consider it worth their while.
  - kevin
    
    Depends on the type of insurance you have. If you get the kind where they dont pay for any damages to your own car then no. The only insurance you legally need to drive is to reinburse others for their car/medical bills if you are at fault.
Captain_Obvious

That’s a shame…
nunya

otisotisotis….
Jake_O

Was he wearing peg jeans and a Natty Bo t-shirt? 100 Bonus points if he was a hipster.
Scott S

I was an intoxicated pedestrian struck by a car 11 years ago, and was found at fault. My car insurance must’ve paid any damages, because I do not remember having to deal with any liability issues. (In NJ, your car insurance is/was responsible for paying up to $250,000 in bills, even if you are a pedestrian.)

Trust me, the pedestrian is paying a steep price. The car damages will be addressed by one car insurance company or the other.
Greg

I wonder if this guy was just barely drunk or sh1tface hammered. If the latter, that’s quite an accomplishment at 9:12 PM on a Tuesday.
Just Me

He should pay for the damages.
chris

Lee highway…that’s a bit of a walk from the forest inn.
jiji

I was walking by there around 10:20pm and the police had the road blocked off. The pedestrian had been taken to the hospital by then but I was worried because I saw blood on the ground and his shoe was lying there.

There was an Asian girl looking really upset and a guy who seemed like her boyfriend trying to support her.

I’m glad everyone is all right.

It’s just really dark there at night, and it seems like there isn’t much traffic so people do walk across where they shouldn’t. It can definitely be difficult for cars to see pedestrians. Cars just need to watch out and not drive too fast and pedestrians need to use the pedestrian sidewalk even if the road looks empty.
jonathan

Im a lifeguard at Yorktown pool and i stopped at the accident to help the man until the ems arrived. it was not a pretty sight.

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