Florida man wants to sue police officer after car accident

Florida Highway Patrol is still investigating a car accident that occurred this past Tuesday. The accident involved a police officer and a husband and wife. The police officer had been on his way to another accident that occurred moments before. But a dispute has risen over whether the police officer had been speeding by with his lights and siren on.

The husband who had been driving the car maintains that there was no warning before he was struck by the police officer. The crash left his wife in the hospital recovering from a lung injury. He is certain that had the sirens been on, the accident would not have occurred because he would have pulled his vehicle over.

The police officer, however, argues that he was following proper protocol and had both the lights and sirens on when the crash occurred. The Police Chief stands behind the police officer.

One witness who had been near the accident scene did not have much information to aid investigators. It happened too quickly – the witness tried to recall whether the police lights had been on right before the collision.

If it is discovered that the police officer had failed to turn on his emergency lights and sirens, the man can seek compensation for his and his wife’s injuries. But the question of who is to blame will likely remain unanswered until FHP completes its investigation.

The victims of the first accident that the officer had been responding to were rescued by bystanders. The accident between the couple and the police officer delayed the response by a few minutes. It does not seem like the victims of the first accident will pursue any legal claims against the police officer for the delayed response.

Source: Sarasota Herald-Tribune online, “Officer hit another car en route to car-plunge scene,” Kim Hackett, 07 July 2011