Justice is mostly unaffordable

[Callace]

There's a great all-too-true onion article about this phenomena, but I can't find the link, anyway...

A few weeks ago, my girlfriend and I were taking a walk at the nature preserve across from our apartment complex. On our way back across the street (a busy intersection), we waited for the walk signal and made sure that no traffic was coming from any direction. A car made a left turn into us @ about 20 mph and hit both of us in the center of the street in the middle of the cross walk. We both bounced over his hood and windshield, and he only stopped accelerating and braked after the impact. He had a red light. He was an uninsured motorist. I shattered my upper left teeth, severed the corner of my mouth, and tore my shoulder. My girlfriend broke her leg.

We went to criminal court, and after admitting to all of this, the driver got off with a $300 fine for running over 2 pedestrians in the crosswalk, at a red light, without having auto-insurance.

I'm still trying to make sense of this. And the only thing I can think of is: the state can't afford to sentence this man any further?

We would like to take him to civil court for our hospital/ambulance bills, but that is looking bleak, as he most likely doesn't have an income/assets with no driver's insurance.

Can society no longer afford justice? Is that why people like this guy get off so easily?

[Saladbar]

I guess I'm wondering what he else he should have been charged with. He was reckless, but didn't appear to act with malicious intent. The $300 certainly seems ridiculously low, but I'm not sure jail time is the right answer here.

[grimsanta]

Why aren't you taking him to civil court?

[Sunseeker]

I'm surprised that's all he got off with. You must have had a shitty prosecutor of he had AMAZING defense, because that's nuts for the amount of damage he caused you.

Do you have health insurance?

[the game]

He probably won't show up to civil court

[Annoying]

If you have health insurance, you can make your insurance take him to civil court. They will garnish his wages if he can't pay for it upfront.

[The One Percent]

Why aren't you taking him to civil court?

It's not worth taking someone with no assets to civil court.

@OP There was never any justice in this world to begin with. I'm sorry for your circumstances. In my opinion he should have had your medical bills garnished from his paychecks and tax returns until he covered what he owned.

[Sunseeker]

He probably won't show up to civil court

If he doesn't then you basically can have free reign on the decision against him.

[Callace]

I guess I'm wondering what he else he should have been charged with. He was reckless, but didn't appear to act with malicious intent. The $300 certainly seems ridiculously low, but I'm not sure jail time is the right answer here.

I'm not saying that prison was the answer. But I would have at least liked to have seen him land community service or have his license suspended.

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Why aren't you taking him to civil court?

We have talked to lawyers, but they are squeamish about taking the case because of the likelihood of no returns beyond very slowly garnishing wages for decades.

[the game]

If he doesn't then you basically can have free reign on the decision against him.

charge him all you want but he prob doesn't have the means to pay for a lawsuit. OP and his gf could be waiting a long time for money to pay their bills.

[Callace]

I'm surprised that's all he got off with. You must have had a shitty prosecutor of he had AMAZING defense, because that's nuts for the amount of damage he caused you.

Do you have health insurance?

It wasn't even a regular trial. Just an assembly line for traffic violations. Prosecutor and defense were pre-assigned and working together with the judge the whole time. It only lasted 2 minutes.

I have health insurance, but it doesn't cover everything (especially my teeth) and it's still going to set me back many thousands of dollars.

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charge him all you want but he prob doesn't have the means to pay for a lawsuit. OP and his gf could be waiting a long time for money to pay their bills.

Right, especially since the lawyers would collect first.

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If you have health insurance, you can make your insurance take him to civil court. They will garnish his wages if he can't pay for it upfront.

While that might be possible, they have already declined to litigate (on their behalf).

[Blueobelisk]

It sounds slightly like an accident. He didn't have a red light if he turned and you had the walk signal. That means he had a green light.

I think punishment should have been more severe, but maybe just to pay you damages/revoke his license. If he wasn't drinking or anything than its hard to say.

[Callace]

It sounds slightly like an accident. He didn't have a red light if he turned and you had the walk signal. That means he had a green light.

I think punishment should have been more severe, but maybe just to pay you damages/revoke his license. If he wasn't drinking or anything than its hard to say.

He was stopped until after we entered the street. The intersection was a three way, and the people stopped behind him claimed the light was red, which is also what the police report indicated. I'm sure he didn't do it on purpose, but he also was driving uninsured, and couldn't have been looking at the road because he braked after the impact, not before. We were in the center of the street, broad daylight, no glare or obstacles.

[Annoying]

It sounds slightly like an accident. He didn't have a red light if he turned and you had the walk signal. That means he had a green light.

I think punishment should have been more severe, but maybe just to pay you damages/revoke his license. If he wasn't drinking or anything than its hard to say.

Left turn lights stay red when a crosswalk sign is on, at least here they do. More aptly, left turns go first, then the crosswalk turns on as the left turn goes red.

[pateuvasiliu]

No assets? Can't the state sell his bike and pay the OP?

[Blueobelisk]

He was stopped until after we entered the street. The intersection was a three way, and the people stopped behind him claimed the light was red, which is also what the police report indicated. I'm sure he didn't do it on purpose, but he also was driving uninsured, and couldn't have been looking at the road because he braked after the impact, not before. We were in the center of the street, broad daylight, no glare or obstacles.

Left turn lights stay red when a crosswalk sign is on, at least here they do. More aptly, left turns go first, then the crosswalk turns on as the left turn goes red.

Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

Sue him. He deserves a harsher punishment. Since its in the police report, you're golden.

If you do civil court, get the estimates for your teeth stuff and whatever else in writing from a doctor. You'll get it.