At 1 a.m. on July 12, a two-vehicle accident in front of a Wawa convenience store in Burlington Township ended the life of a motorcyclist. The police investigation of the incident was still ongoing over 12 hours after the crash, and no charges had been filed.
The motorcycle accident occurred on Route 541 near Mount Holly Road. According to the police report, a 58-year-old Eastampton man was headed north on a Harley-Davidson motorcycle when it collided with a Ford Explorer, driven by a 33-year-old Burlington man, that was turning left.
The motorcyclist was severely hurt in the crash and taken to Lourdes Medical Center for treatment. He was later transferred to Cooper Hospital in Camden where he succumbed to his injuries. The driver of the Explorer was unharmed in the accident.
Depending on the results of the police investigation, the family of the deceased rider from this incident may have cause to seek compensation from the driver of the Explorer. If the accident report finds that the Ford driver turned into the path of the motorcycle, that finding may warrant civil litigation in the eyes of the victim’s family. However, if the report ends up stating that the SUV was hit by the motorcycle while it made the left turn, that piece of information would likely give the family pause in considering a wrongful death suit. The second circumstance could compel the driver of the Explorer to file suit against the motorcyclist’s estate.
An important distinction between the above scenarios is which party can reasonably be considered culpable for the accident in each. In the former, it seems as though the Ford driver failed to pay attention to the biker. The opposite seems to be the case in the latter.
Source: CBS Philly, “Motorcyclist Dies In Crash In Burlington Township, New Jersey“, July 12, 2014