Pedestrian struck by NYPD patrol car gets bill for damage to vehicle
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A Manhattan pedestrian says the NYPD is adding insult to injury after it sent him a bill for $1,028.08 after an officer in a patrol car struck him while he was crossing the street in April.
The New York Daily News reports 25-year-old Jesse Zorski was struck in the right leg by the patrol car April 12. Zorski told the paper he smashed into the side-view mirror and hit the ground, landing on his wrist.
The police said the officer had the right-of-way, but Zorski claimed he had a green light. He wears a hearing aid and admits he had drank two beers that night, but says those factors didn't play a role in the accident.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}“I was perfectly coherent,” Zorski told The New York Daily News. “I was shocked, certainly, but not inebriated.”
Zorski and his family sued the department for the costs he incurred from hospital bills and the ambulance.
After filing the lawsuit, Zorski received a bill from a law firm hired by the city demanding he pay $1,028.08 to cover the cost of the repairs to the patrol car.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The NYPD told the New York Daily News that the bill was a mistake, and the city law department said it will withdraw the case.
“The letter should not have been sent,” said Deputy Commissioner Paul Browne told the paper. “We’re examining safeguards to make sure similar letters are not sent in the future.”
Zorski and his family believe the bill was in response to their lawsuit.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}“It does seem that when they realized we were going to sue they sent us the bill,” he said.