Feldman, Kleidman, Collins & Sappe LLP’s (FKC&S) 21-year-old client, a municipal worker from Poughkeepsie, NY, was crossing Montgomery Street from south to north on May 27, 2023. The defendant was driving westbound and trying to beat the yellow light. Multiple witnesses told FKC&S that the light was red for the driver as he struck our client with the front driver’s side of his car. The defendant told the police that he had a green light and that he never saw FKC&S’s client, remarking that he “came out of nowhere”. As a result of the accident, FKC&S’s client sustained a small brain bleed and still has some sensitivity to light. He was out of work for about three months.
Steven H. Cohen placed the case into suit and then took the deposition of the defendant. Contrary to what he told the police, he testified that he saw FKC&S’s client in the roadway to his left and then chose to focus his attention on the right side of the road where there were multiple people on the sidewalk. After the deposition, the insurance carrier for the driver offered up all of the available insurance and the case was quickly settled.