Is This Fair?

A bus driver working under contract for the Denver RTD blew through a red light on April 3, 2010, smashed into a Volkswagen and killed the two occupants, then hit a pickup truck and injured more than a dozen more people, including passengers on the bus. The bus driver was charged by police with 13 misdemeanor careless driving violations.

Those people who were injured – some severely – will have major medical bills, lose time from work, have rehabilitation expenses, and will suffer, along with their families and loved ones, who knows what emotional trauma. I can tell you that if my child or husband or mother were injured in a crash like this, I would want someone to be held responsible and their injuries, trauma and suffering to be fully compensated.

But that’s almost certain not to happen here. Justice also is not likely in the other two RTD bus crashes that happened this week, one of which killed yet another person.

You see, in Colorado government entities such as RTD are protected from lawsuits in cases such as these. They can be sued, but damage awards are restricted to $150,000 per person injured or $600,000 for everyone injured in a single event. Divide $600,000 by 13 and you get a little more than $45,000 per person. Think that will go very far?

Plus, the law protecting RTD (and other government entities) is so restrictive and complicated, it’s easy to make a minor paperwork mistake and be cut out of any chance for compensation at all.

Is this fair?

I don’t think so, and I hope this rash of bad accidents will lead to change. Innocent people are being hurt – and killed. If you or I caused this suffering with our personal car, we’d sure be held responsible. But when the law says government agencies like RTD have immunity, where’s the incentive for them to put safety first?