Earlier this month in El Cajon, a 36-year-old woman was killed early on a Friday morning when another driver sped through the intersection of Washington and South Mollison, slamming into her car. The woman’s car, a Chevy Sonic, was flipped over on its side, and the woman was pronounced dead by the time emergency crews were able to respond to the accident.
Witnesses of the car accident say that the driver ran a red light, and that stop light violations happen frequently at this intersection. One resident of the neighborhood where the crash took place mentioned that the area is notorious for red light violators, and that these reckless acts happen all the time. A local business owner echoes that observation, noting how he often hears engines downshift in front of the light, accelerating to go through.
The deadly auto accident has again raised questions about the decision to remove red-light cameras from busy city stop lights, which San Diego and many neighboring cities made earlier this year. Fearing that the cameras were not a deterrent and were not making the city as much money as planned, the cameras were recently removed by city officials. However, people in the area beg to differ, and think that the cameras were useful in preventing accidents at busy intersections. According to one local resident, who wishes the cameras hadn’t been removed, the devices did act effectively as deterrents.
In this case, the family of the woman who was killed may be able to bring a suit for damages for her possible wrongful death. Despite the absence of cameras, since there were plenty of witnesses who saw the other car allegedly run the red light, any negligence should be well-documented.
Source: Fox 5, “Police: Red-light runner caused fatal crash,” Sharon Chen, May 10, 2013
