A New York City pedestrian who was struck and injured by a police car was sent a sorry apology from the New York Police Department.
Jesse Zorski, a 25-year-old tailor from Maine, was sent a bill for $1,028.08 to cover the damage incurred by the NYPD patrol car that hit him at a crosswalk on the night of April 12, the New York Daily News reports.
The car struck his left leg, causing him to fall on his wrist. Zorski’s family paid $1,200 for the ambulance and other hospital fees.
After receiving some push back from the Daily News, the NYPD acknowledged that the bill should never have been sent. In the meantime, the family is suing the city to cover Zorski’s hospital fees. Although the police department alleges that they had the right of the way, Zorski claims he had a green light as well.
This isn’t the first time that the city of New York has tried to collect money after colliding into pedestrians. In September, Laverne Robinson received a bill for $710 from the city after a police car hit and killed her son Tamon. Once again, a spokeswoman from the Law Department said the letter was sent in error, the New York Times reports.
The largest police force in the nation, the NYPD has 34,000 uniformed officers, AlterNet reports. For every 1,000 New York City residents, there are 4.18 police officers.
But car accidents involving police is not an isolated problem in New York. In November, an officer in Texas resigned after injuring a couple crossing the street with his car. A pedestrian in Sacramento, Calif. was killed in September after being hit by a police officer responding to a call about a stolen vehicle. Police continue to investigate an incident in Arizona where a 34-year-old man was hit by a 13-year veteran of the police department.
More than 5,000 Americans are stuck and killed by cars every year, the Los Angeles Times reports. Motor vehicle accident deaths fell to an all-time-low in 2009 down 35 percent from 2001, according to Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
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