Chicago Bus Video Shows Man Struck and Killed By Bus
Lawyers for the family of a man struck and killed by a CTA bus in September today released surveillance video (click HERE) of the incident they received as part of the family's suit against the agency.
The video shows the northbound No.14 Jeffery Express bus pulling to a bus stop at 95th Street and Jeffery Avenue several minutes after 9 p.m. on Sept. 17.
The front passenger door opens and a man in a dark jacket gets aboard. Another man, who can be seen in the reflection of the bus shelter apparently sitting in the bus shelter, appears to get up and gesture at the bus. The door slides shut and the No.14 bus starts to pull away.
The man, a cane in one hand, takes a step toward the side of the bus and reaches out his arm. As the bus moves past him, he loses balance and falls under the wheels of the two-car bus' rear car.
The man's lawyer, Marc Taxman, said it appears his client wasn't able to stop his own momentum. It is unclear from the video if the bus driver is aware of the incident.
The bus pauses for about a second as it approaches the intersection, the man still prone underneath it. When the vehicle heads across 95th, its backmost wheels roll over him.
The man -- identified as Michael Payne, 51, of the 10000 block of South Crandon Avenue -- was pronounced dead on the scene a few minutes later.
The video was taken by a camera mounted on the bus' passenger side, Taxman said. It came to light after Payne's mother, Verna Payne, sued the Chicago Transit Authority and the bus driver in November.
The wrongful-death suit alleges that the driver should have seen Payne, who was disabled and walked with with a cane, approaching the bus, and should have been able to avoid hitting him.
Taxman received the video and others from the CTA after subpoenaing footage from the agency and from businesses near the intersection where the incident happened.
Sheila Gregory, a spokeswoman for the CTA, said the agency would not comment on the suit because it does not comment on pending litigation. In general, she said, standard operating procedure requires that drivers, before leaving a bus stop, are to use their mirrors to check that passengers are clear before closing the doors.
"After the last customer has made their fare transaction, operators are to check that all vehicles and pedestrians are clear and that the traffic signal (if any) indicates to proceed," Gregory said in an email.
Regarding assistance to disabled riders, operators "should offer assistance to customers with disabilities who may experience difficulties boarding or alighting the bus, depositing currency/coins, using farecards, securing a mobility device or using a seatbelt," she said.
A call to the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 241, the union that represents CTA bus drivers, was not returned.
After Payne was struck and as the bus pulls through the intersection, a person shown on the corner appears to wave an arm, as if to signal the driver.
Though it's unclear if the driver sees, he stops the bus just beyond the intersection and walks back to where Payne remained on the ground.
It is unclear, as he emerges from the bus, if the driver knows that a person has been struck.
The video shows the northbound No.14 Jeffery Express bus pulling to a bus stop at 95th Street and Jeffery Avenue several minutes after 9 p.m. on Sept. 17.
The front passenger door opens and a man in a dark jacket gets aboard. Another man, who can be seen in the reflection of the bus shelter apparently sitting in the bus shelter, appears to get up and gesture at the bus. The door slides shut and the No.14 bus starts to pull away.
The man, a cane in one hand, takes a step toward the side of the bus and reaches out his arm. As the bus moves past him, he loses balance and falls under the wheels of the two-car bus' rear car.
The man's lawyer, Marc Taxman, said it appears his client wasn't able to stop his own momentum. It is unclear from the video if the bus driver is aware of the incident.
The bus pauses for about a second as it approaches the intersection, the man still prone underneath it. When the vehicle heads across 95th, its backmost wheels roll over him.
The man -- identified as Michael Payne, 51, of the 10000 block of South Crandon Avenue -- was pronounced dead on the scene a few minutes later.
The video was taken by a camera mounted on the bus' passenger side, Taxman said. It came to light after Payne's mother, Verna Payne, sued the Chicago Transit Authority and the bus driver in November.
The wrongful-death suit alleges that the driver should have seen Payne, who was disabled and walked with with a cane, approaching the bus, and should have been able to avoid hitting him.
Taxman received the video and others from the CTA after subpoenaing footage from the agency and from businesses near the intersection where the incident happened.
Sheila Gregory, a spokeswoman for the CTA, said the agency would not comment on the suit because it does not comment on pending litigation. In general, she said, standard operating procedure requires that drivers, before leaving a bus stop, are to use their mirrors to check that passengers are clear before closing the doors.
"After the last customer has made their fare transaction, operators are to check that all vehicles and pedestrians are clear and that the traffic signal (if any) indicates to proceed," Gregory said in an email.
Regarding assistance to disabled riders, operators "should offer assistance to customers with disabilities who may experience difficulties boarding or alighting the bus, depositing currency/coins, using farecards, securing a mobility device or using a seatbelt," she said.
A call to the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 241, the union that represents CTA bus drivers, was not returned.
After Payne was struck and as the bus pulls through the intersection, a person shown on the corner appears to wave an arm, as if to signal the driver.
Though it's unclear if the driver sees, he stops the bus just beyond the intersection and walks back to where Payne remained on the ground.
It is unclear, as he emerges from the bus, if the driver knows that a person has been struck.
posted by Steve Hemenway at
Saturday, January 23, 2010
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