A woman in her 70’s was struck and killed early this morning by the driver of a truck on Canal Street in Chinatown. It happened at about 4 a.m. The victim, who has not been named, was crossing the street when a 2003 Jeep Grand Cherokee came through the intersection and hit her.
The driver, also unidentified, told the Daily News, “I didn’t see her, she was very small.” A delivery truck driver, Armando Noreles, said he was waiting alongside the SUV for the red light to turn. “When the light changed he started driving, and he didn’t see the lady and he just hit the lady,” Noreles said. The woman was seen every morning in the area. Noreles said he sometimes spotted her collecting cans for cash. The News reported:
The woman’s small blue step stool, used to boost her up over trash cans to search for recycling, was lying on the street beside the black shoes she was knocked out of. A bag half-full of recyclables lay a few feet from them on the sidewalk.
The victim was rushed to New York-Presbyterian Lower Manhattan Hospital, but there was nothing doctors could do.
Margaret Chin’s office has issued a press release calling for the police to enforce a new Vision Zero law and press charges against the driver for failure to yeild. I completely agree. In many states, this would be a closed and shut case of vehicular manslaughter. NYS needs much tougher laws against irresponsible drivers. And the NYPD needs to enforce the few laws we have. How many more pedestrians will be run down in the street?
I always say – if you wanted to get away with murder in NYC all you have to do is hit somebody with a vehicle and play dumb. You’ll get a slap on the wrist, and your problem person will be dealt with!