New York, N.Y. (October 23, 2024) - New York Partner Andrew Harms recently obtained a defense verdict in Kings County Supreme Court in a motorist vs. bicyclist negligence action.
Bicyclist Alfredo Dallas claimed that on July 14, 2019, Lewis Brisbois' client driver Mary Tscherne struck him from behind after he lawfully stopped at a red light on a busy thoroughfare in Queens, NY. The plaintiff claimed that before the impact, Ms. Tscherne drove her vehicle on the tail of his bicycle and honked her horn loudly and impatiently.
Mary Tscherne was accompanied by her husband Herbert Tscherne (both 77 years old at the time) in the vehicle. The Tschernes both testified that they never made contact with the plaintiff; instead, they stopped their vehicle fifteen feet behind the plaintiff after he stopped. The Tschernes also testified that when they first approached plaintiff on his bike one block away, he was weaving back and forth in their lane of travel at a very slow speed, prompting Ms. Tscherne to tap her horn lightly several times.
After Ms. Tscherne stopped the vehicle, the plaintiff leapt up off his bike, picked it up and set it down in front of their vehicle. Then he forcefully pulled the handlebars out of the frame, walked to Ms. Tscherne's driver's side window and threatened to hit her if she dared get out of the vehicle. The plaintiff then returned the handlebars to the bike and began pacing wildly back in front of the vehicle while he called 911 for the police and an ambulance. The Tschernes never left their vehicle out of fear, and the police and ambulance arrived within ten minutes. The plaintiff was removed to a hospital by ambulance where he complained of left leg pain and a nasal fracture. He thereafter received arthroscopic surgery to his ankle.
Mr. Harms' trial strategy involved highlighting the multiple inconsistencies between the plaintiff's deposition and trial testimony to demonstrate that the plaintiff's story was always shifting. He closed by arguing that the plaintiff's story shifted because he was making it up and could not remember all of the details. Our clients' story, by contrast, was consistent from the very beginning to the end. There were only three witnesses, a police accident report and a few pictures of the roadway in evidence.
The first question to the jury was whether Ms. Tscherne was negligent. The jury answered unanimously "No". Polled individually afterwards, each juror firmly confirmed their finding of "no negligence" before the plaintiff.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
