CBS NEWS — Stephen Levey was riding his motorcycle along Pacific Coast Highway on November 14 when he was nearly killed in a multi-vehicle crash.
Wild footage of the crash captured by Levey’s helmet camera shows a truck flying through the air toward him as he sat a red light on PCH and Kanan Dume Road.
The truck landed on top of him, sending him to the hospital via helicopter.
According to investigators, the truck was broadsided by a driver traveling at extremely high speeds behind the wheel of a Lexus that had run a red light, causing the grisly crash.
The driver of that Lexus died at the scene after the car burst into flames following the collision. The Lexus was stolen, according to the L.A. County Sheriff’s Lost Hills station.
Investigators said the truck driver survived the crash but did not disclose whether the driver suffered injuries.
While he considers himself more than lucky to have survived the terrifying experience, Levey is now left with both physical and emotional damage.
“As bad as this is, and it’s bad, boy, do I feel lucky,” Levey said. “I can’t believe I walked away from it without paralysis, a lost limb, brain damage.”
He did, however, suffer an injury to a limb he uses on a day-to-day basis to earn an income. As a professional photographer, Levey requires full use of his right hand, which he says was shattered from his elbow to his fingers.
“I now own quite a bit of titanium, which I did not want.”
Additionally, he suffered nine broken ribs — one of which punctured a lung and caused it to collapse — as well as injuries to his right leg and foot.
As he works to bounce back from the life-changing incident, Levey has learned that he may not receive insurance money to help him cover medical expenses because the car that caused the crash was possibly stolen.
“That person was in a rehabilitation center and either escaped or was let out early for some reason,” said Brian Breiter, an attorney. “We’re still trying to get to the bottom of that.”
He and Levey are asking anyone with more information on the crash, or who may have witnessed the moments leading up to it, to contact them as soon as possible.
“Stephen’s looking at lifetime of debt as a result of something he had nothing to do with,” Breiter said.
Unable to return to work for the foreseeable future, with his surgeon unsure if he’ll ever be able to operate a camera with his right hand again, Levey hopes that community members can come together to help him cover the mountain of medical expenses facing him.
“I’m preparing for the worst since it looks like we’re going in that direction,” he said.
We wish a quick recovery for all victims involved in this crash during this very difficult time.
When individuals are harmed or killed in traffic accidents, and another party is at fault, full compensation is not always granted, despite the circumstances. Skilled legal representation from a car or truck accident attorney is typically a must in these situations.
Legal Defenders at the Law Offices of Burg and Brock has helped countless families and individuals obtain the compensation they need to deal with expenses and move on with their lives. For a police report or other information, call us today at (818) 405-9091.
What California law says after a motorcycle accident
Motorcycle collisions and California law
California expressly recognizes lane splitting, the practice of a motorcycle riding between rows of stopped or slow moving vehicles travelling in the same direction, in Vehicle Code section 21658.1. A rider who was lane splitting is not automatically at fault for a resulting collision. As in any collision, the question is what each party actually did and whether it was reasonable under the conditions.
California sets no legal speed limit and no speed differential for lane splitting. Figures that circulate widely, such as riding no more than ten miles per hour faster than surrounding traffic, come from a safety guidance document that was withdrawn more than a decade ago and were never part of the law. The California Highway Patrol publishes safety tips rather than numeric rules, and riding on the shoulder is not lane splitting and is not lawful.
California also requires every motorcycle rider and passenger to wear a helmet meeting federal safety standards, and the helmet must be properly fastened and correctly sized.
Motorcycle cases carry a practical difficulty that does not appear in other collisions. Riders frequently face an assumption that they were speeding, weaving, or riding recklessly, regardless of what the evidence shows. That assumption can appear in early reporting, in an insurer’s evaluation, and later in a jury’s thinking. Physical evidence, scene measurements, and independent witnesses often matter more in these cases than in a routine collision.
Reporting requirements after a California collision
California imposes reporting duties on drivers that are separate from any insurance claim.
A report must be filed with the DMV on form SR-1 within ten days of a collision that caused any injury, any death, or more than one thousand dollars in property damage to any one person. This duty applies regardless of fault, applies even when police responded and wrote their own report, and is not satisfied by notifying an insurance company. With current repair costs, most collisions that involve a body shop meet the damage threshold.
A separate rule covers collisions causing injury or death. The driver must make a written report to the California Highway Patrol, or to the city police department where the collision happened in a city, within twenty four hours. The statute states this duty for every injury or fatal collision. In practice, where officers responded and completed a report at the scene, that report generally satisfies the agency’s need, but a driver who assumes this without confirming it is relying on practice rather than on the text of the law.
Missing the DMV deadline can lead to suspension of driving privileges, an outcome unrelated to who caused the collision.
Your Rights After a Motorcycle Accident in California
A collision like this one raises questions about fault, insurance and medical costs, usually before anyone has had time to think about them. These guides explain how California handles them.
- California motorcycle accident lawyer: lane splitting, fault, and what a claim is worth
- Brain and spinal cord injury lawyer: the injuries most common in motorcycle collisions
- All practice areas