Fourteen-Year-Old Girl Killed in Farmingdale Crash

A tragic car accident in Farmingdale killed a 14-year-old girl who was a passenger in one of the vehicles. According to reports from law enforcement, the victim was in a 2017 Honda Odyssey that was attempting to take a left-hand turn onto southbound Main Street from westbound Fulton Street when the vehicle was hit by a 2014 Jeep Wrangler that was traveling eastbound on Fulton.

The impact of the crash sent the Honda spinning into two other vehicles stopped at a light at the intersection. The young victim, along with the 45-year-old driver of the Honda and 54-year-old driver of the Jeep, were all transported to the hospital, where the girl later died from her injuries. The other victims were described as having non-life-threatening injuries.

Under New York law Section 1140, there are different rules for who has the right of way for vehicles who are either entering or approaching intersections. In the first scenario, the driver of the vehicle that is approaching an intersection is required to yield the right of way to any vehicle which has already entered the intersection. If two vehicles enter the intersection at the same time, then the vehicle on the left is required to yield the right of way to the other vehicle.

Section 1141 specifically addresses who has the right of way for vehicles taking left-hand turns. The law states that the driver of the vehicle which is attempting to take a left-hand turn at an intersection, private road, alley, or driveway is required to yield the right of way to any vehicles that are traveling in the opposite direction when that other vehicle is close enough to be considered an immediate danger.

Left-hand turns are often considered one of the most dangerous driving maneuvers for drivers to take. Statistics appear to confirm that. The U.S. Department of Transportation data concludes that more than 50 percent of all crossing path crashes involve a vehicle attempting a left-hand turn.

And the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has determined that almost three million crashes in this country that happen each year happen at intersections, and most of them are caused by someone attempting to turn left.

Upon hearing of the fatal crash, Attorney Neal Goldstein commented, “Our thoughts go out to the family of this young girl. It is always a tragedy when a person is killed in a car crash, but even more tragic when the victim is a child.”