A Shrine for Martha

SO SAD!! I saw the truck on the sidewalk. I’m so upset that a person was killed that way. Makes me understand the people who tell me to “live life while you have it”. It could’ve been any of us.

Someone on the scene said the driver was in diabetic shock.

Is it just me or does it bother anyone else that the NYPD has released no information about how this horrible event occurred? Presumably, since the NYPD determined “no criminality suspected,” the person who killed Martha Atwater is still free to roam our neighborhood streets with his weapon. At the very least, the public has the right to have answers to the following questions:

– Who was the driver of the vehicle of that killed Martha Atwater. What is his name and where does he live?

– Why exactly did the driver of the vehicle lose control?

– How did the NYPD determine that the vehicular manslaughter of Martha Atwater was an “accident” and not the result of negligence? What evidence led the NYPD to this determination and the immediate exoneration of Martha’s killer at the scene?

– Why isn’t our local press, or City Council member or District Attorney or the person who edits this blog demanding answers to these questions?

I heard that as well.

It bothers me as well. This can’t go on.

Good questions all. Also, was any effort by the NYPD made to find witnesses at this busy, well-populated corner? If not, why not??

Couldn’t agree more. How can they absolve the driver of criminal culpability on the spot? What through investigation could they have conceivably done? Was the car impounded to determine whether there was mechanical failure or any other evidence that could shed light on the cause of the accident? Were the video feeds of every single camera along the route of the car, i.e., proceeding along Clinton Street, across Atlantic Avenue, onto the sidewalk? Was the driver subjected to tests to determine presence of drugs that may have impaired performance? Were the medical records of the driver reviewed to determine whether he had diabetes? There is so much that we don’t know about the circumstances leading up to this excruciatingly tragic death. Then entire community deserves answers. As a separate matter, agree also that the BHA, as a singularly credible advocate for the Brooklyn Heights community, no less an entity on which the Ms Atwater served as a Board member, should ensure that our police officials, as prompted by our political leaders, provide full transparency on the details of this investigation and answers to the many questions that so many have in the wake of this tragedy.

BHA has all of its resources tied up fighting public bike-share stations, I believe.

A few months back Judy Stanton seemed very hot-and-bothered about the dangers that a bike-share station on Clinton Street might someday impose on pedestrians. Has she said even a word about Martha’s killing? Does the BHA have any policy ideas for how we might prevent future fatalities like this from happening, like, say, pedestrian safety bollards at dangerous corners? Could the BHA, perhaps, use its considerable resources and political clout to help get NYPD to release evidence to the public about who the driver was and why he lost control of his vehicle?

Or, do we only hear from BHA when pedestrians face some potential future threat from bicycles?

This is defensive nonsense which has nothing to do with the facts that were ignored by the PD and that they were quick to 1. declare it an “accident” and 2. offer up a black out excuse among other things. I am with ClintonAndAmity 100%.

No. You clearly do not understand the law. To make an arrest one needs probable cause that a crime was committed. No one has been exonerated. The investigation I am sure is ongoing. Should determination that a crime was committed the subject will be arrested.

They didn’t exonerate anyone yet. They are still investigating. The only thing that might prove criminal negligence is the driver’s medical records- which are privileged. So the police don’t have access to them. The best a black box could prove is speeding, which isn’t a crime – it’s a traffic infraction. If you think it should be a crime then take it up with the state legislature – there’s nothing the police can do about it. Cops can’t even write a ticket if they didn’t witness it – that’s in the criminal procedure law. I can’t imagine any one but the most devout anti-car zealot supporting making speeding a crime though.

If you kill a pedestrian while speeding, texting, driving drunk or committing any other infraction in your car then, yes, that is a crime and a District Attorney can choose to prosecute it as such.

That being said, the law is incredibly weak in cases of motor vehicle violence. If you ever want to murder someone in NYC, use a motor vehicle as your weapon, be sober and stay at the scene and show remorse, and you’ll most likely walk away with nothing more than a Failure-to-Yield summons, at most.

To suggest, as you do, that it is not a crime to kill pedestrians while speeding is beyond sociopathic. It’s psychopathic.

I did not know Martha but I am a Packer parent and worry relentlessly about that intersection. I have even threatened to walk my child to school until graduation. This is terribly sad and could have happened to any one of us or our children on that evening. My child walked by the accident 10 minutes later. While I agree there are many unanswered questions about the driver, focusing on him will not make this intersection safer. We need to get the DOT to look at traffic light timings, how to impede speeding, and other ways to make this and other intersections along Atlantic Ave safer for pedestrians both on the street and sadly on the sidewalk too.

I was a law enforcement officer for 20 years albeit not in NYC. I have handled many accidents, some fatal, and many in a supervisory capacity. I dealt every day of those 20 years with the Penal Law, Criminal Procedure Law and the Vehicle and Traffic Law and more importantly case law. Willowtowncop is a current NYC law enforcement officer. We are both telling you the way it is but i guess we both got it wrong and we’ll just have to defer to your greater expertise.

So please tell me what the police should have charged this person with?

We have no idea what this person should be charged with because the NYPD will not make any meaningful facts about the case known to the public. But Vehicular Manslaughter would be an obvious place to start. Impounding this guy’s car and making sure he is not still driving on NYC streets would be the absolute bare minimum they could do.

If Mrs. Atwater were killed with a gun (and even if the gun were fired by accident by an individual with a health condition), the perpetrator would be behind bars while the justice system sorted it all out and determined his guilt or innocence. I see no reason why it should be any different when the weapon is a motor vehicle.

Your point seems to be: “That’s not how it is.” Thanks. I understand perfectly that this is not how the law in New York City and State currently treats cases of vehicular violence and manslaughter. My point is: This system is broken and it needs to change.