Man Arrested in Fatal Howell Pedestrian Accident
Monmouth County investigators have zeroed in on the driver of the box truck that allegedly struck and killed a 59-year-old man last week.
The body of Thomas Kovacs was found on route 33 last week. He lived at a residential care facility in the area. Investigators from the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office, who evaluated the debris at the site of the accident, were able to determine that the vehicle that struck and killed Kovacs, was a box truck. They were also able to pinpoint the kind of damage that the box truck might have sustained in the crash. The truck was found this week in a commercial parking lot in Freehold Township. The driver of the box truck, Dinesh Kumar Patel has been charged with leaving the scene of an accident.
Very often, tracing the driver in a hit and run pedestrian accident can be hard. There may be no witnesses at the scene. Even if there are witnesses, they may not have been able to note down enough details like the color and model of the car, the appearance of the driver, and the license plate number. Without these important details, investigators find it hard to trace a suspect. Eric Kerecman, who is the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office detective, was assigned the task of finding the hit and run driver here. He deserves kudos for the excellent job he has done, and the speed with which he has nabbed Patel.
Last week, I expressed concern at the high rate of pedestrian accidents in New Jersey this year. So far, in the first 8 months of 2009 alone, we have lost 103 pedestrians in accidents. These numbers are higher than they were at the same time last year. New Jersey authorities have been implementing a decoy program to catch crosswalk violators red-handed. Enforcement is very important, but there also needs to be greater awareness of the rights of pedestrians.
Scott Grossman is a New Jersey pedestrian accident lawyer representing victims injured in accidents in Monmouth, Bergen, Passaic and Ocean Counties, and across New Jersey.
