Modesto pays more than $625,000 in traffic accident

A traffic accident has cost Modesto $625,341.

That breaks down to the $487,500 the city paid to settle the lawsuit filed against it and the $137,841 the city paid to defend itself in the litigation. The city hired attorneys to represent it. Modesto did not admit to any liability in reaching the settlement.

The accident occurred on the morning of June 7, 2014, in central Modesto. The lawsuit states Jeremy and Cynthia Newman were on a motorcycle heading west on Celeste Drive when Melissa Gruenhagen pulled in front of the couple while making a left turn from the Windsor Apartments’ driveway on the 1300 block of Celeste.

The lawsuit contends Gruenhagen’s view was obstructed by vehicles parked along her side of the two-lane street because the 6-foot-long red, no-parking stripe the city had painted along the curb by the driveway was not sufficient to give drivers leaving the apartment complex a good view of traffic.

“According to her deposition,” said Stockton attorney Stewart Tabak, who represented the Newmans, “she stopped and looked and listened but was unable to see or hear anyone approaching until it was too late.”

Tabak claims Modesto contributed to the accident by letting cars park too close to the driveway. Several other red, no-parking zones by driveways for nearby apartment complexes and health care facilities appear to be at least twice as long. Tabak said police determined the obstructed view was a factor in the accident, and there was no evidence the Newmans contributed to the wreck.

He said the Newmans sustained permanent, lifetime injuries, with Jeremy Newman more severely injured. The settlement, in part, reflects the severity of the injuries. The Newmans have moved out of state and did not return messages left on their phones Tuesday.

They sued Modesto and Gruenhagen in Stanislaus Superior Court in July 2015. The case was dismissed in October. Gruenhagen was not insured at the time of the accident, according to court records. She did not pay anything to settle the case.

Gruenhagen declined to comment.

Modesto had sought to have the judge dismiss the case through what is called summary judgment. The city and its expert stated the 6-foot-long red stripe met state law, but Tabak and his expert disagreed. The judge ruled this was a question for a jury to answer.

City Attorney Adam Lindgren said Modesto faced significant additional costs even if it had prevailed at trial. He said the Newmans were recently married and a jury would find them sympathetic. “The accident had a very significant impact on their lives,” he said.

This story was originally published November 24, 2017 at 1:50 PM with the headline "Modesto pays more than $625,000 in traffic accident."