q2bman wrote:Speaking as a Police Officer, The vehicle that hit the whatever is a fault. No insurance co. or lawyer in his right mind will try a case involving a traffic arrow on a private citizen's car representing the wrong direction or causing a traffic hazzard at an emergency. The driver, although directed into whatever lane, is responsible for driving at a speed that is safe in the event of any emergency. Only when directed by a Police Officer would the vehicle's driver not be held liable. You are not intitled to your opinion on what action is safe when directed by an officer. Then officer takes priority over traffic lights, signs, and all elese.
The reason a plaintiff attorney is unlikely to take a case involving a private person with an arrow stick is one of the oldest legal principles there is: you can't get blood out of a rock. Suppose you do get a judgement against Robert or me acting as private persons? What are you going to get? It's a huge myth that peoples houses get taken or their wages garnisheed for life. It's not done. The short story is, plaintiff attorneys don't take cases unless they know where the money is coming from. They want to get paid, and paid now, and not have to go through hundreds of hours of work finding sources of money to satisfy judgements. Better to go after the municipality or the construction company with $150 million in insurance limits.
But what's the proper doctrine for an EMS worker responding? I don't think EMS workers responding in their cars should attempt to redirect traffic. It takes more manpower and likely more lights and control devices than you've got to make a safe diversion. Besides, the medic's got more pressing things to do than set up traffic. His role is to help casualties.
I'd say the medic should use his best lights in a warning mode - wig-wag or similar - dead in front of the accident scene. Follow-on units are the ones that should set up any diversions. The incident commander, through the operations officer, ought to have someone whose sole job at this incident is to set up traffic control. The senior police officer at the scene will give the direction that it's okay to set it up after talking with the incident commander. "No, Sergeant, I think we should do something about the 8,000 gallons of fuming nitric acid leaking out of the truck first before opening a lane." In other words, if there's fire or a hazmat condition, the incident commander is going to be a fire officer. The mop-n-glow guys have their work to do. The police will have overall charge once these other things are cleared.
Where I live, in Connecticut, the state DOT has large orange trucks with crash cushions that patrol I-95, helping stranded motorists and suchlike. They've got big arrow-boards and lots of cones, and at least one responds to all accidents. These guys take the lead in setting up any traffic control. Everybody has a job. All the parties have to work together.
Don't worry about liability directly. If you worry about liability too much you're likely to find it. Instead, worry about the mission and doing it the best way possible.
Enough about me to tell you why I think I know what I'm talking about: I'm civil works safety manager for a big civil works construction company with several hundred million dollars of work in New York and New Jersey. I'm also the risk manager, handling the lawsuits and approving settlements and so on. I have 29 years with my company. I've worked on the Brooklyn, Williamsburg, Queensborough, Triboro, Throg's Neck, Whitestone, and Tappan Zee bridges, the Long Island Expressway and the New Jersey Turnpike.
