Badsnke98

Not so fast everyone! I do not know the traffic laws of the State were this occurred but in my State this is how it would fall.

Even if the traffic light did just turn Red for the crossing car and Green for you, that does NOT give you with the Green light the legal right to enter that intersection! You must be sure all traffic has stopped, or all nearby vehicles are for sure coming to a stop before you may enter that intersection, and the key here is enter safely.

Two traffic violations here. One: Fail to Stop for Red Traffic Light. Two: Entering a Green Light Traffic controlled intersection before all cross traffic has cleared or come to a complete stop.

Yes, number two is a ticket here, a lot of times it takes two for a collision to occur, the law it is meant to help avoid deadly collisions at traffic light controlled intersections.

Hatchman

So sorry to hear about this. I hope everything turns out well.

rrobello

this occurred in CA, it was a protected left turn, meaning it was a green arrow, while it is not smart to enter an intersection without making sure that all traffic is stopped it is not against the law, while running a red is. Even if it were it would be very hard to prove that he didnt do that, especially since he was half way through the intersection when he was hit, where as with the girl you can check the lights and prove that she ran it. All this said, running a red would supercede everything else and trump his not looking if that did happen and she would still be held responsible.

FYI, in CA it is also legal to make a lane change in an intersection as long as it is safe to do so

FordFun

To add to your case go back and take pictures of the intersection and
draw up what happened. You'll have more evidence and the 16 year
old will have to do the lying. Hopefully the insurance agents will see
through that. I won a he said - she said in a parking lot accident.

IF the girl was telling the truth then it means you performed a Left
turn on RED. That's the least likely time one would run through a red
light I would think. If one was going to 'chance' it then at least one
would do it while the ARROW was Red and the main light was green.

You've got that going for you and you should beat out this LIAR.

Trooper4985

There you go... try to tell the cop how to do his job. Nothing scores points with me more than someone who believes CSI is how real police work is done tries to tell me how to do my job.

<!--QuoteBegin-gmichael@January 21, 2006, 12:56 PM
Anyway, does anyone know if there some kind of cheap pc based camera system that could record your driving and how much a system like that would cost to get installed?

Thanks

Quoted post

[/quote]

You mean like this?

Mike McRann

In regard to telling the police officer to check the girl's cell phone records to see if she was on the phone when the accident happened...
Some officers ask about cell phone use in the course of their investigation...I know that happened to me when I was involved in an accident at work (I work for an ambulance service).
One day we were driving on the freeway when traffic started slowing ahead of us. As I was slowing down to stop a truck in another lane rearended a car, then slid into the back of the ambulance causing minor damage.
When the CHP officer arrived he took all my paperwork (DL, Ambulance License, Medical Cert and insurance card) and asked if I had a cell phone, and if so was I using the phone at the time of the accident.

acadian

Rich... so sorry to hear about your car, bro. I hate to see another '05 hit. Makes me sick. I hope you get back to normal ASAP.

06GT

Holy crap!!

Glad to hear that you are OK...I hate seeing such a beautiful car destroyed by the recklessness of another

05GT-O.C.D.

Sorry bro. It's a reminder to all of us to watch the other drivers... pretend you're on a bicycle while driving these cars... they seem to be magnets for accidents.

SRQ05GT

Ya, to bad, but glade your ok. I had the same thing happen to my Z-28 and the local body shop fixed it perfectly. I never noticed any difference. Gota watch out, there are a lot of really bad drivers out there. I avoid EVERYONE.

karrnutt

Sorry about your unfortunate accident . It is great to know that nobody got hurt . I know you must be pissed! I hope they can fix your stang as good as new. I especially am upset at seeing your hurt pony since I was admiring it and many others on the exterior mods pages today. Good luck ,I hope everything comes up roses for you.

Boltzman

Don't get bent out of shape.You must hate David Caruso

bpmurr

I got t-boned back in October with very similar damage to you. I took it to a local body shop and when they were done it looked better then stock. The body work and paint match are unbelievable. For those that think he might get a new ride out of it I doubt it. His car isn’t anywhere close to being totaled. I doubt there is any structural damage. I’d put this around 8 to 9k though in costs based on my experience.

I included a before and after shot of my car. Hope it makes the situation feel a little better. The most important thing is you all are ok.

lodom

I'm sorry to hear about your car, but glad to hear you're ok. This whole situation stinks. She shouldn't have been on the road and obviously ran the light. It wouldn't make any sense for you to have left an apartment complex without stopping first before entering an intersection, unless the light wes green.

If you haven't given a statement to the insurance adjuster yet, I recommend writing down everything that happened before the accident, so you won't leave out any important details.

One of the scariest things I encounter driving is entering an intersection on a light that just turned green, especially if I'm already in motion. There's little you can do, except hope the cross traffic stops on red.

Good luck with getting your car repaired!

Radman

Sorry to hear that. Best of luck.

GhostTX

This might be one of the few times where a red light camera would be nice. Use those pics as evidence that she ran it and hit you.

Screamer

I think this is what happened, that 16 yo must have been way past her curfew (or maybe even sneaked out of the house, who knows). She is trying to get home ASAP before the parents wake up. She decideds its 2 AM in the morning and no one is going to notice or care if she runs a red light, and then BAM! Wrong place at the wrong time.

Sucks to see the pony got hurt, but I'm glad that every one is ok though.

Burke0011

Rich...... awww man ... I am sorry this happened to you and your ride, bro!

I literally had two people in the cubicles around me look over whent he pic of your car came up and I said "NO!" a bit too loud.....

Glad you and your passenger are okay.

As for the chick....

:bang: @#^&*$^@*&$^@&$YU$@&*$#(*#@%

I've said it before and I'll say it again - when I was a kid in Jersey, you got your permit at 16 and could drive WITH ANOTHER licensed driver, but could NOT drive on your own till 17 or something. Sorry to offend some people but no 16 year old should be out driving around alone at 2:00am.

tw0scoops123

Funny how they just came out with a story that teenagers cause 33% of fatalities in car accidents. More than you car being pulvarized, im pissed that she had the ***** to lie about it.

SurfnSoCal

sorry for not responding sooner guys-

First, thanks for everyone's concerns and sorries. It was really unerving to see that Jeep coming at my driver door. I literally hit the gas just in time to take the impact behind my driver door. After looking at the car the next day...I probably would not have walked away if I hadn't have gassed it.

Second, my dad was a traffic cop for 20 years...and did CSI (not the tv show, actually did that) for a number of years. He specialized in accident reconstruction.

After it happened, I made sure my girlfriend was ok (passenger). She was in shock and wouldn't get out of the car. At that point, I wasn't sure if fuel had spilled out or anything like that...so I acted quickly. my door wouldn't budge...it was jammed close. So I had to sit on the center console and kick it open with my feet (good thing I am only 5'7").

I got out, and the saw the other driver (young girl) was crying on her phone. not sure if she called after the accident or what. I flipped open my cell as I walked arround the car to note the time and start calling 911. Got my girlfriend out as well as the other driver. 911 finally picked up and they sent a fire truck, ambulance, and yes.....a helocopter. Apparently there was a shooting about 10 min. before my accidnet about a mile away. So the helocopter was already up. it was really scary having the spot light on me...hearing the helocopter and such. Not to mention it was a warm 39 degrees out and I was in a dress shirt and slacks.

Anyway, I dialed my mom and she came out....and I guess the other girl called her mom as well. My dad, now retired, owns his own private investigation firm. He and my mom do alot of work for insurance companies with accident reconstruction, and figuring fault.

while me and my mom were standing there...with the other girl and her mom...waiting for the police....the girl's mom asked her "did you run the red light?" and she said "yes". Of course, when the police showed up...she said that it was green.

The cop said she wasn't drunk...and didn't detect any narcotics. There were no witnesses and no cameras. No skid marks, nothing.

Its me and my gf's word against hers. And the cop said because she was in my car...she isn't a credible witness. Not to mention, she was intoxicated.

So, my parents are running searches on this chick this morning. By the end of the business day...we will know more about her than her own mom, doctor, and boyfriend. I am not positive on her age, as that wasn't a question on the form she filled out and gave to me (I filled one out as well). But thats easy to figure out.

From the video my mom took at the scene and my dad's opinion...its going to be VERY difficult to prove either way. with the way she hit me and spun....either of us could have ran the red.

I'll keep everyone updated later.