BELFAST, Maine — A pedestrian who was struck by a Waldo County Sheriff’s Department vehicle Friday morning in a downtown crosswalk was able to walk away from the scene of the accident, according to police.
No charges will be filed, said Chief Mike McFadden of the Belfast Police Department.
Peter Kerrigan, 76, of Swanville had been walking up the Main Street sidewalk about 11:30 a.m. but paused before crossing Waldo Avenue.
Meanwhile, a county jail transport vehicle driven by Robert Walker, 39, of Stockton Springs stopped and signaled before turning left onto Waldo Avenue from Main Street, according to eyewitnesses, McFadden said.
“He’d stopped to make sure the intersection was safe. Once the way was clear, he proceeded,” McFadden said. “When the cruiser turned, the gentleman was simply standing there … at the time the cruiser turned, the gentleman decided he would start in the crosswalk.”
The vehicle, which witnesses said was moving slowly, struck Kerrigan.
“He didn’t get run over. He had time to jump onto the hood,” McFadden said. “The car stopped almost instantly.”
Kerrigan complained of hip pain, but refused treatment.
McFadden said that every time a pedestrian is hit, especially in a crosswalk, the police investigate.
“It doesn’t matter if they were hit by Joe the plumber or someone from the Sheriff’s Department,” he said.
But because of the high-profile nature of the accident, McFadden talked to Waldo County District Attorney Geoffrey Rushlau.
“I ran the details of the case by him, without explaining who was involved,” the chief said. “He agreed with us that the circumstances here suggest that the operator of the vehicle was not in violation. When the gentleman walked into the crosswalk, he didn’t allow enough time.”
McFadden said that others could learn a lesson from the incident.
“It’s summertime. Pedestrians and motorists alike should operate under the assumption that they’re not entirely sure what the other person is going to do,” he said. “Err on the side of safety.”
Man is at the start of crossing street, on the crosswalk. He looks both ways and then proceeds, and is struck by a vehicle turning the corner. It is up to the operator of the vehicle to be aware of ANY person in a crosswalk, whether they have started walking across or not. The vehicle must stop. This is the law. It sounds like Mr. Walker is getting a pass on his bad judgement in proceeding before ensuring that the gentleman crossing was aware of him turning the corner, regardless of his “slow speed”
The fault lies with the driver.
You’re absolutely right about “the law” regarding pedestrians, and Mr. Walker getting a pass is putting it mildly. Under the same circumstances, if it was a CMV involved, the driver would likely be in jail, Mr. Kerrigan, who thankfully was not seriously hurt, would be an instant millionaire, and the posters here would be screaming “life in prison!” for the maniac truck driver.
“It doesn’t matter if they were hit by Joe the plumber or someone from the Sheriff’s Department”…. What a crock of BS.
Everyone is treated equally under the law. Just some more equal than others.
““I ran the details of the case by him, without explaining who was involved,” the chief said. “He agreed with us that the circumstances here suggest that the operator of the vehicle was not in violation. ”
I guess you missed this part. The decision was made without knowing who was involved.
I thought things such as this were settled in an open court of law in this country? Sounds like Soviet style justice. I’m just sayin……. What isf the tables were turned, would the pedestrian get a private audience with the DA? Hahahahahahahaha
Everything goes by the D A first. The D A then determines if there was wrong-doing and if it is something that can be successfully prosecuted. There is no devation from the norm in this case.
Are you saying all infractions involving pedestrians,crosswalks and motor vehicles goes to the DA before a summons is issued?
Uh huh, and if you believe that no police spokesman has ever, ever shaded the facts or embellished the truth in the least to protect his own …. I have a bridge in Brooklyn to sell you. It’s a great deal and I may be able to get you a statement from the Brooklyn police telling you so!
Yes it is the law to yield to pedestrians in a cross walk, but in the same token pedestrians need to make sure the vehicle is stopped before proceeding through the crosswalk. I can’t tell you how many times someone just walks out in front of me while texting or something not even looking to make sure I stop. Just because it is the law doesn’t mean everyone follows laws. Glad this Man wasn’t hurt but maybe he learned a lesson here, one can only hope.
Happens all the time in Blue Hill. Not people getting hit, but they will step into the crosswalk when you are almost there and just start walking. Don’t even look to make sure that the drivers are going to stop. I’ve had so many close calls, and I’m a VERY careful driver especially on Main street Blue Hill, but people will just step in front of you and assume that you see them in time to stop at the last second. Idiots. When I’m walking my dog around town and get to a cross walk, I ALWAYS wait till I know the drivers coming BOTH ways see me and are going to stop. Doesn’t matter if the pedestrian has the right of way, it’s a moot point if you end up dead. Wake up pedestrians and use some common sense! From what I read from this article, I think the pedestrian was TOTALLY at fault.
I hope this gentleman gets a lawyer. Not only for the fact that he got hit ON A CROSSWALK, but for the fact that the Police Chief ran right to the District Attorney to plead law enforcement’s side of the case before anyone else had the chance to. Yeah, it was the 76 year old man’s fault! He ran RIGHT OUT INTO THE ROAD and didn’t give the inexperienced motor vehicle operator a chance to stop before he was on the hood. I’d like to see the crime scene recreation on this one…. We hit someone on a crosswalk we’re going to jail, going to pay medical costs for life, but the DA’s chummy’s do it and we’ll just blame the “old guy’s”.
There must have been a camera recording it from somewhere that could reveal the real evidence.
I like the Police they keep us safe, yet if it would have been an Officer who got hit, the driver would have been hauled in and charged.
and the driver who hit the cop would be in jail on some absurd bail amount.
Not necessarily. My mother ran into a police cruiser in Bangor while making a left turn and she didn’t even get a ticket. The police officer whom she ran into said that he saw her come to a complete stop, and then pull slowly out, hitting the left front of his car. He saw it coming but had no room to swerve. This was her only accident in her life so she’s not a careless driver and she was about 40 years old when it happened and it was midday with good lighting. Apparently her view of the police cruiser was obscured by cars parked along the street, and then by her right door post as she began to pull out. Sometimes things like that just happen. Suggesting that she surely must have gone to jail or paid a huge fine couldn’t be further from the truth because she didn’t get a ticket or have to go to court or anything. I’ve seen cops with chips on their shoulders, but most of them are very fair and honest citizens and don’t deserve to be maligned as if they’re out to put innocent people in jail. They have a tough job to do on our behalf and deserve our support, not vilification for what you imagine they might do.
Sue them!
How many times have we saw a Waldo county transport van speed ? I have many times. Not the best drivers but they seem to get a free pass.
Funny how when I do that the headline reads, “Carmel man runs into pedestrian in crosswalk,” but when a cop does it, the headline reads, “Sheriff’s Department vehicle…..” What…. no one was driving it?
Drama, otherwise folks won’t read it.
District Attorney Geoffrey Rushlau Under Investigation for Misconduct, Criminal Acts…
http://rushlau.blogspot.com/
There are a lot of people who work in Maine as DA employee’s under investigation. Wonder how they do it?
Hitting a pedestrian in a cross walk should be “Failure to Yield to a Pedestrian in Crosswalk”
I thought the usual proceedure is you get a ticket and are told to “tell it to the judge” if you think you have a case.
You are all wrong! My father was hit in a crosswalk in Maine, as were several others and the women was NOT charges with ANYTHING either. The thing we all need to understand is that although Maine says pedestrians have the right of way when IN a crosswalk is simply NOT true. This women hit more than one person, sending a few to the hospital and got NOTHING!
Back in the early 80’s my sister was hit crossing a crosswalk, a car stopped for her, a woman in her 60’s at the time drove around the stopped car and hit my sister. She kept on driving. My father ran and yelled and reached into the window and forced her to stop while someone at a nearby business called police. The woman was put on “probation” I believe for a couple of months and I believe her fine was under $100. 2 years later, the woman was in a police log in the paper, did the same exact thing, she was fined again, lost her license for 6 months. The law does squat even today, if someone in a crosswalk is hit.
Who was she related to?
Is this the same Robert Walker who is visionally impaired in one eye? My relatives from Belfast seem to think so.
Do people no understand that a moving car needs space to stop? If you walk off the sidewalk and continue in the cross walk……….if there is a care right there…………they need TIME and ROOM to stop and that takes the vehicle into the crosswalk. I had a police officer walk directly off the sidewalk into the cross walk as I was at the crosswalk. NO time to stop my motorcycle, so he was halfway across and my motocrcyle went over the crosswalk. Vehicles don’t stop immediately. Walkers need to PAUSE and let that driver approaching the crosswalk know to put the breaks on, otherwise crosswalks need to become STOP signs.
It appears that the pedestrian stopped and checked and the car was not moving before he started across the street.
If the van really started up slowly and the pedestrian was in the crosswalk he should have had plenty fo time to stop.
The “facts” sounds fishy here.
Cover-up and corruption, pick a badge number.
No charges, no surprise, heck do you know how many times I have had a Bangor PD cruiser not stop for me in a crosswalk, they just come zipping on through while I have a walk signal….the law enforcement is above the law when it comes to traffic violations.
I got hit a year ago by a bangor police officer in a crosswalk, no charges were filed nor did the chief of police care to hear my part. Even though he is a transport officer, we all know no charges would be filed
I hear ya, I filed a complaint to Gaista, it was his second year on the job and he didn’t seem interested, he had a ton of excuses for his fellow officer including “distracted listening to the radio”. I replied to him and said “I hope your department doesn’t enforce driver distraction laws seeing how your boys can’t drive and listen to a radio at the same time, nothing like the good ol boys network” Never got a reply and not that I wanted one, but I am waiting for the day Bangor PD pulls me over for something, they are not going to like my attitude much as my first question will be “Wow you know how to turn them lights on and enforce a law finally? Too bad it is not one of your own fellow officers nearly running people over in crosswalks”
“But because of the high-profile nature of the accident, McFadden talked to Waldo County District Attorney Geoffrey Rushlau.”
Let’s hope that Rushlau isn’t on vacation when there is a real crime committed in Belfast.
What part of “pedestrian has right of way” do the police not understand.
What’s the bag limit on annoying pedestrians these days? =)
I have no idea whether Mr. Walker was at fault. Neither does anyone else who wasn’t there. However, Ms. Curtis’s lead sentence suggesting nothing serious happened — “let’s just move along now, folks” — and the Belfast police chief’s obviously biased statements assuming innocence on behalf of a fellow law enforcement officer are simply not credible. Chief McFadden long ago demonstrated he is a dishonest cop. Ms. Curtis continues to demonstrate she is a timid sycophant of a reporter who is content to merely regurgitate what she is fed.
“In a written statement issued August 5th, 2011, Attorney General William Schneider outlines a conflict of interest and insists that his office cannot prosecute Mr. Rushlau because his office in fact represents Mr. Rushlau.”
Are these people that hold citizens to the rule of law above the law?
“In a written statement issued August 5th, 2011, Attorney General William Schneider outlines a conflict of interest and insists that his office cannot prosecute Mr. Rushlau because his office in fact represents Mr. Rushlau.”
Are these people that hold citizens to the rule of law above the law?