In a recent year, Dallas recorded 73 fatal pedestrian crashes, a figure that remains distressingly high despite public safety initiatives. Following such an incident, the legal path forward is seldom straightforward. The outcome of your case could depend on a difficult interplay between the Texas Transportation Code, the physical design of the intersection, and the legal doctrine of shared fault.
Many people harbor the assumption that if they were not inside a painted crosswalk when they were hit, the driver is free of all responsibility, which is why speaking with a Dallas pedestrian accident lawyer can be critical. Insurance adjusters may use ambiguous terms like jaywalking to dismiss valid claims, even in cases where the driver was clearly speeding, distracted, or failed to yield as required by law. The insurance company’s primary investigation will partly focus on shifting as much fault as possible onto you.
Having an experienced team of attorneys on your side to help level the playing field will ensure you get the compensation you deserve. We have the tools and resources to conduct a thorough investigation of your case. Call AMS Law Group today for a free consultation.
Key Takeaways for Dallas Pedestrian Accident Claims
- An unmarked intersection crossing is a legal crosswalk. This means drivers have a statutory duty to stop and yield to you, even if there are no painted lines on the road.
- A driver’s green light is not an absolute right-of-way. Drivers must still exercise due care and scan for pedestrians, especially when turning right on red or left on green.
- Texas law may allow you to recover damages even if you were partially at fault. Under the state’s 51% bar rule, the key is to prove the driver was more at fault for the collision than you were.
The Reality of Dallas Streets: Why Just Being Careful Isn’t Enough
Many of our major roads are a blend of street and road that combines high-speed traffic with numerous conflict points like driveways and business entrances. This design inherently places pedestrians at risk. While only about 2% of Dallas residents commute on foot, pedestrians tragically account for approximately 30% of all traffic fatalities in the city.
Research from the Texas A&M Transportation Institute reveals that pedestrian fatalities across the state have surged by a staggering 69% over the past decade, highlighting the growing causes of pedestrian accidents in Texas. This trend is fueled by factors like poor nighttime lighting and the increasing prevalence of larger vehicles such as SUVs and trucks, which can cause more severe injuries. By a recent year alone, Dallas’s Vision Zero dashboard had already recorded 402 crashes involving pedestrians.
What Counts as a Crosswalk in Texas?
There is a widespread and legally incorrect belief that a crosswalk only exists if it is marked with white stripes on the pavement. This misunderstanding can lead injured pedestrians to believe they have no rights simply because they weren’t crossing between two painted lines.
Texas Transportation Code § 541.302 defines what constitutes a legal crosswalk, and recognizes two types of crosswalks:
- Marked Crosswalks: These are the familiar crossings designated by surface markings.
- Unmarked Crosswalks: An unmarked crosswalk exists at an intersection as the natural extension of the sidewalk lines across the street, even if no paint is present. If you are at a corner where a sidewalk on one side leads directly across to a sidewalk on the other, you are in a legal, unmarked crosswalk.
Myth vs. Reality: A Guide to Deconstructing Common Liability Misconceptions
Myth: “I was jaywalking, so I have no case.”
- Reality: The term jaywalking is a colloquialism, not a legal shield that automatically absolves a driver of responsibility. While Texas law does require a pedestrian crossing at a point other than a crosswalk to yield the right-of-way, it does not erase the driver’s simultaneous duty of care. The law establishes the pedestrian’s duty, but it works in concert with the driver’s obligation to operate their vehicle safely.
Myth: “The driver had a green light, so they had the absolute right of way.”
- Reality: A green light does not grant a driver unconditional passage through an intersection. It grants permission to proceed if and when it is safe to do so. This is especially true in two common scenarios:
- Right on Red: A driver making a right turn on a red light must first stop and yield to all cross-traffic, which includes pedestrians lawfully in the crosswalk.
- Left Turns on Green: Drivers turning left at an intersection frequently focus on oncoming cars, forgetting to scan the crosswalk for pedestrians who have a Walk signal.
Myth: “If I was wearing dark clothes at night, it’s my fault.”
- Reality: While wearing reflective clothing is always advisable, the law holds drivers to a reasonable driver standard. This includes the expectation that they will not over-drive their headlights, meaning they should not drive at a speed where they cannot stop within the distance illuminated by their vehicle’s lights. A driver’s claim that they didn’t see a pedestrian until the moment of impact can sometimes be evidence of their own negligence, suggesting they were traveling too fast for the conditions or were not paying adequate attention to the road ahead.
Myth: “Rainbow or decorative crosswalks are illegal and unsafe.”
- Reality: In recent years, Dallas has seen controversy surrounding decorative crosswalks, particularly the rainbow-themed designs in Oak Lawn. While state and federal transportation bodies have raised concerns about non-standard markings, arguing they could be a distraction, there is no conclusive data showing these designs have led to an increase in accidents. From a civil liability standpoint, a driver cannot use the color of the crosswalk paint as a defense for failing to yield to a pedestrian.
Understanding Modified Comparative Negligence in Texas
The entire legal process following a pedestrian accident in Texas revolves around the principle of proportionate responsibility. This means you are permitted to recover damages from an at-fault party as long as your own percentage of responsibility for the accident is 50% or less. If your fault is determined to be 51% or greater, you recover nothing.
This rule turns the claims process into a battle for percentage. The insurance adjuster’s primary objective is to find any evidence that can push your share of the fault over that 50% line. A few percentage points may be the difference between receiving fair compensation and receiving nothing at all.
Consider these scenarios:
- Scenario A: A pedestrian crosses mid-block at night (assigned 20% fault), but is hit by a driver who is speeding at 45 mph in a 30 mph zone (assigned 80% fault). The pedestrian can recover 80% of their damages.
- Scenario B: A pedestrian, looking at their phone, steps out from behind a parked delivery truck, giving an attentive driver only half a second to react. A jury might find the pedestrian 60% at fault and the driver 40% at fault. Here, the pedestrian recovers nothing.
Remember that fault is not decided by the initial police report, and how fault is ultimately assigned can significantly impact personal injury settlements. A jury will look at the totality of the circumstances: the lighting conditions, the driver’s speed, evidence of distraction, the road’s design, and the actions of both parties in the moments leading up to the impact. Our role is to build a case that presents a full and accurate picture to ensure fault is assigned fairly.
Preserving Evidence from Home: What Needs to Happen Now
While you focus on your physical recovery at home, certain types of evidence with very short lifespans may be disappearing. Taking prompt action to preserve this information is one of the most important steps in protecting your legal rights.
Electronic Data Recorders (EDR)
Nearly all modern vehicles are equipped with an event data recorder or black box. This device records key data in the seconds just before and after a collision, such as vehicle speed, brake application, and steering inputs. This data is invaluable in refuting a driver’s claim that they braked hard or swerved to avoid the collision. This data might be overwritten quickly, so we advise contacting a lawyer to send a preservation letter to the vehicle’s owner and their insurance company right away.
Video Surveillance Footage
Many accidents are captured by nearby cameras. Think about the businesses, homes with doorbell cameras (like Ring or Nest), or traffic cameras near the scene. This footage is typically deleted automatically on a short loop, sometimes in as little as 48 to 72 hours. An immediate investigation to identify these cameras and send formal preservation-of-evidence letters is needed to prevent this crucial evidence from being erased.
Cell Phone Records
If there is a suspicion that the driver was texting or using an app at the time of the crash, we will seek to obtain their cell phone records through the legal discovery process. This may provide a timeline showing whether the driver was engaged in a distracting activity at the exact moment of impact, which is compelling evidence of their negligence.
911 Call Recordings
Recordings of 911 calls may identify witnesses who reported the accident but left the scene before speaking with police. These individuals sometimes provide an unbiased account of what happened, and the call logs give us a way to find them.
FAQ for Dallas Pedestrian Accidents
What if I was hit by a driver while walking to a DART bus stop where there was no crosswalk?
Even without a crosswalk, drivers still have a duty of care, especially in areas where they should reasonably expect pedestrians, such as near a bus stop. The legal analysis would examine the driver’s speed, attention, and whether the pedestrian’s path was a well-known, albeit unofficial, crossing point. In some cases, a municipality might even share some liability if the bus stop placement created a foreseeable hazard without providing a safe way to cross.
Can I still claim damages if I had been drinking alcohol before walking home?
Yes, you may still have a valid claim. A pedestrian’s intoxication is a factor that a jury will consider when assigning percentages of fault under comparative negligence. However, it does not automatically bar you from recovery. If the evidence shows that the driver was also negligent and that their negligence was the primary cause of the accident, you may still be entitled to compensation. The key is how your impairment contributed to the accident compared to the driver’s actions.
The police report says I failed to yield. Is my case over?
No, your case is not over. In Texas civil trials, police reports are generally considered hearsay and are not admissible as evidence to prove who was at fault. The officer who wrote the report typically did not witness the accident and is basing their conclusions on statements gathered at the scene.
While the report is a useful tool for an initial investigation, the final determination of fault is made by a judge or jury, not the responding officer. They will hear testimony and review all the admissible evidence to make their own decision.
What happens if the driver who hit me fled the scene (Hit and Run)?
If you were the victim of a hit-and-run, your primary source of recovery will likely be your own auto insurance policy, specifically through your Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist (UM/UIM) coverage. This coverage applies even when you are a pedestrian. It allows you to file a claim with your own insurance company to cover the damages that the at-fault, unknown driver should have paid.
Let’s Determine Where the Fault Truly Lies
Pedestrian laws in Texas are not a simple matter of black-and-white rules, and the grey areas are used to the benefit of insurance companies. Their goal is to use any ambiguity to shift blame and minimize what they have to pay.
If you have questions about a pedestrian incident in Dallas, contact our team today. We will review the crash report, analyze the intersection’s design using satellite imagery, and explain the specific evidence needed to establish liability in your case. There is no cost to discuss your options, and we will act quickly to help prevent evidence from disappearing for good.