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Spooked hit-n-run victim wants to know: Whodunnit?
July 8th, 2009, 3:00 am · 37 Comments · posted by Teri Sforza, Register staff writer
It was just after midnight. Patti Pattison was heading home to Coto de Caza after her late shift at Hoag Hospital in Newport Beach.
It’s rather desolate on the 241 toll road at that time of night, so Pattison quickly noted the ultra-bright headlights shining in her rear-view mirror. They seemed quite far away.
In no time, those lights were on top of her. BAM! The car hit her from behind. BAM! It hit her passenger door. BAM! It hit her front fender. And the world started spinning.
“It was like the teacups at Disneyland,” Pattison says. “I spun around at least five times - I stopped counting after five - and the car’s up on two wheels and I’m saying, ‘It’s going to roll! What am I going to do?’ I’m thinking, ‘the poor people in planes going down, they’re like this too, aware of everything’ and I’m screaming, ”Stop! Just stop!’”
And it did. Pattison’s battered Volvo came to rest in the dirt median between the northbound and southbound lanes, about one foot from a large concrete pilaster. “Just one more revolution,” she says, “and my brains would have been all over the toll road.”
But she was most certainly alive. That’s when she saw the other car - beige, it seemed - speed off and exit at Alton Parkway, leaving her for (what very well could have been) dead.
Pattison - and her insurance company - want to know who was driving that car. Not just because Pattison’s Volvo suffered nearly $7,000 worth of damage, or because the offending driver was traveling at some 90 miles an hour, or because hitting and running is a no-no. “How could someone do such damage and then leave?” Pattison says. “That, to me, is just incomprehensible.”
WHODUNNIT?
It should not be too terribly hard to find out who hit Pattison.
Technically, the identity of every driver who skips the cash booth on the toll road is a known quantity: Either said driver has an account and a transponder which records all his tolls (linked to his name, address, phone number, etc.); or said driver is a scofflaw, and the toll road’s cameras snap a photo of his license plate as he tries to slip by without paying.
Pattison says the car that hit her definitely did not go through the cash booth. So the Transportation Corridor Agencies - which runs the toll roads - either has a photo of the car skipping through the toll, or its driver has an account which recorded his toll. The agency should know precisely who was driving through the toll plaza around the same time Pattison did that night.
The California Highway Patrol - which patrols the toll roads and investigated Pattison’s accident - requested information from the TCA.
The TCA, however, “did not find a match to that request,” said TCA spokeswoman Jennifer Seaton.
She’s not at liberty to divulge exactly what the CHP requested, and CHP spokeswoman Jennifer Hink is running down the details. But the accident is listed in CHP records as minor with no injuries, so even if the offending driver was caught, his offense would be a misdemeanor, not a felony, Hink said.
Meantime, Pattison still takes the toll road to work in the bright light of the afternoon to her job as a clerical coordinator at Hoag - but she takes Interstate 405 home at night.
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37 Comments
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Have begun using the same night-time route after auto issues on the deserted road. No lights, no safety personnel, nothing around. It scared me enough to being using the 405 as well. Better to have it take longer but feel safe. The TCA should “re-examine” its records. And if they don’t have a match then their system is flawed.
Maybe it shows that those without transponders can get a free pass if they can’t tell who went through.
I have to wonder how the “search” of the database was conducted. Let’s say they only checked for vehicles passing through within 15-20 minutes of the accident. Now suppose that the driver of the hit-and-run vehicle went through the toll booth much earlier, parked and drank a few beers or hit the meth pipe. He/she then takes off and hits this woman’s car. Their database search would not have found a match.
I would suggest widening their search criteria to a couple of hours prior to the accident.
Maybe it’s one of those accounts that is protected by the TSA because it’s a clerk for a judge or whatever that scandal was.
Those toll booths need to be reserved for one thing and that is to enforce the tolls for using that road.
I am sorry to hear of the incident and if the driver got the plate number then that would be another story.
We have to stand up for the rights of everyone. What if you were driving along the same road and exited and someone claimed you caused the accident and your information was released by a third-party based on a simple request?
You would then be pulled through the Court System and have to spend thousands of dollars to defend your actions.
I was involved in a hit and run at an intersection where traffic cameras were installed and did not ask for the footage. I was out about $3K in damages as it was just a minor front end damage caused by the other driver. We have to protect the rights of everyone.
P.S. If you are the driver that hit this lady (or my car three years ago), I am sure she would be happy to receive a check (as I would) for the damages.
What do you mean ” stand up for the rights of everyone “. What a crock. I use these highways and toll roads and am sure most would agree that if you can catch some idiot wreaking havoc on OUR highways using toll road technology, great! Why should the innocent victim have to pay because you are paranoid you will be accused of a crime you didn’t commit. If they found the car involved, it would surely have damage along with the victims paint on it. Your post is bogus, I am tired of protecting the guilty because of some stupid misguided feeling that our privacy is being infringed upon.
I am with you on that one! I don’t understand why they could nt catch that rotten driven, something is rotten on the 241 tool road. I sure will not drive it at night and will tell my family about this.
So you are willing to allow the State to record your actions and use the same technology to enforce speeding on the toll roads?
The Toll Roads have the technology to determine your exact speed or average speed on the Toll Roads by using the time stamps between two toll booths.
Allowing them to release confidential data enables them to also cite you as a criminal speeder on the road and issue a citation for every day you used the Toll Roads and it it determined based on time stamps on your account each day you violated the law and endangered the lives of everyone on the road.
The post is not bogus and until you can and the majority of Americans are ready to give up their right to privacy then we can begin making this society a safer place control by government overisght.
Alan, even if they release info on the driver they still need to show proof (a tore up car or credit card charges for car repairs) before charging the person. They have the right to a fair trial. It sounds like you would prefer protecting this scumbag (prevent the relase of his info) out of fear that you might be charged for excessive speeding. Quit speeding and you wouldn’t have to worry! Way to show compasion for your fellow man…
I agree Zephead, Alan, that is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard. Sorry you didn’t think of asking for the footage in your accident, but that doesn’t mean no one else should try to investigate a crime committed against them.
Alan - this sounds like attempted murder to me. And you defend the drivers right to privacy? If you are ever the victim of a crime, keep tht in mind. The report was mistakenly categorized. Makes their job easier tho.
There were no injuries involved in the incident. Now if it was a felony then that is were the Courts have ruled the right to privacy is waived in most cases.
Alan: “What if you were driving along the same road and exited and someone claimed you caused the accident and your information was released by a third-party based on a simple request?”
What a baseless comment. This wouldn’t occur because it would be OBVIOUS from the lack of damage to a car if someone didn’t do it.
I had a friend that was hit on the toll road back in January. This was actually the 133 by the 5. It was a hit and run and her car was totaled. She was injured and found unconscious. The CHP was also unable to track down who hit her. I don’t think it is a matter of protecting a person’s rights. They aren’t going to give you their information, rather use it to invesitgate themselves. If you have a similar car and you are innocent you will be fine.
Now that is a felony hit and run as injuries were caused in the commission of the crime. I am shock that DA Tony Rackauckas was not able to get a subpoena from the Court to obtain those documents.
However, he might not of seen it as an important case for his office to handle.
Of course he didn’t see it as an important case; only cases that are sure to give him good press are important from his perspective.
Scarey….Having been on that stretch of the Toll Road in the dark a time or two, I am not only disheartened that you had such a traumatic experience, but that you are not seeing progress with tracking down your “attacker”.
Just curious if you got billed for your trip on the Toll Road or was the transponder reader not working that night and that is the reason for “no data” to be found and no one wants to accept responsibility. Wonder where the due diligence is on the part of The Toll Road? They have nothing to gain by not assisting CHP to find a felon. Also, I would question ‘minor’ damage that is indicated on your CHP accident report if damage was that obvious, but photos of your car will justify the amount of your claim with your insurance.
Regardless, so glad you are here to share your story.
Alan - what is with clowns like you? Always defending the idiot!
Answer the question instead of making remarks…
Are you willing to allow the Toll Road Agency to use the same records that can be obtained in this case to also issue citations to everyone who were criminals and sped on the Toll Road endangering the lives of people around them when operating their vehicles? Thus resulting in numerous citations.
I am actually for such action as it would create a lot of revenue for our community and make people wake up. But are you and the majority of Americans ready for such government activities?
I would like to see cameras on all major highways to cite criminals and generate revenue for the State.
You cannot allow some camera footage released unless you allow for universal control of the government.
I don’t know why they couldn’t only release the info in case of a serious crash with some special type of request needed. But at the same time not routinely use it for traffic enforcement. Although it might not be a bad idea to have a threshold speed that if they were going over say 90 or so it would be picked up.
My daughter has a scanner and took a trailer with her one day and didn’t know you have to pay extra for the trailer. A picture was taken of the side of the vehicle and one of the license plate. Something doesn’t sound right that they couldn’t locate the hit and run driver. I’m sure he was probably drunk with a suspended license.
Patti if you are reading these posts were you from Long Beach years ago.
It is unfortunate for all of us, driving on ANY toll road or freeway late at night, but what’s more tragic is the lack of the feeling of security, or lack thereof. I don’t feel this is a matter of invasion of privacy, but rather the secure feeling that the cameras that are on the toll roads are put to a better use than to just determine who is skipping out on paying a price to use the road (even if they are outlandish). When a crime has been committed, you would think - however minor the crime is - that a law enforcement agency would have the ability and the authority to investigate, along with approval for investigations to take place by the individual that the crime was committed against, and their insurance representative.
Maybe the car had paper plates or no plates. This is a common scam to avoid paying the tolls. No plates, no ticket unless you’re nabbed by the CHP.
If the car exited Alton they can use the records from that transaction, NOT just the transaction at the main toll way.
I do not believe anyone should have an expectation of
privacy when they are intentionally perpetrating crimes upon the public. If the perpetrator knows their identity
will not be released, relating to their crime, there is no deterrant and total lawlessness.
If the Transportation Corridor Agency knows the information on the other vehicle and refuses to turn over the information I urge everyone to cancel your toll road scanner and stop using the toll road.
I am a friend of Patti Pattison. It should be known that
she sustained injuries from this hit and run accident.
The impact and violent rotations caused a hematoma
to her forehead, over her left eye and a bad left shoulder sprain. She missed 3 days of work because of the accident. She is also having blurred vision in her left eye, since the accident. I am thankful she survived without major injuries. I hope this article helps to identify the
person who caused the accident.
Everyone should get over themselves who think releasing information from the cameras is a violation of civil rights or NOT for the right purpose. If a car was on the road and the Toll Road officials have that information, it should be given to the highway patrol officers. Move to France if you don’t like it. I would sue to get the information turned over and request the high patrol list my indicent as attempted murder. Sounds like the car hit Pattison on purpose.
Alan, unless California law is changed, no one can legally issue a speeding citation using the method you describe.
From the California Vehicle Code:
40801:
No peace officer or other person shall use a speed trap in arresting, or participating or assisting in the arrest of, any person for any alleged violation of this code nor shall any speed trap be used in securing evidence as to the speed of any vehicle for the purpose of an arrest or prosecution under this code.
40802 A “speed trap” is either of the following:
(a) A particular section of a highway measured as to distance and with boundaries marked, designated, or otherwise determined in order that the speed of a vehicle may be calculated by securing the time it takes the vehicle to travel the known distance.
I completely agree. That is why we need to change the law and make our roads safer. Would you not agree?
My money is on the car having paper plates. I see cars without licenses plates run the main till booth on the 73 all the time. Very rarely do I see those “new” cars go into the toll booths to pay. I am sure that some my have a transponder, but I never see them mounted on the windshield as required by Johnny law.
I think it is disgusting that anyone would have to hire a lawyer to do the job that our Bureaucratic Officials should be doing. Next time you bash a lawyer, ask yourself if the lawsuit resulted from a Bureaucratic official who did not
do their job.
It’s a shame that the CHP and The Toll Roads management decline to get more involved with this incident. I think they will do as little as possible unless there is a direct order from the District Attorney. If it was one of their own that was involved in this senseless accident, you can bet that the idiot that caused it would be serving time in jail by now.
Thank God that my neighbor Patti Pattison was not injured more than she was that night on the 241. It could have ended much worse.
I’ve been keeping up on your progress or lack there of from my big brother Wat. Since the accident he has been concerned and I want you to know you’re in my prayers. I hope the article in the Register this next week will bring out more light. Patti, keep a positive attitude even though it looks grim now. Justice will prevail. My best to you, Joye
Interesting after reading the earlier article/post that she mentioned the color but not the body type of the car. And it also mentioned really bright headlights which I think are usually found on newer cars. Not sure if they can be used as replacement bulbs on older cars.
Presumably it might have left some residue on her car. Of course the longer time that lapses, the more time there is for the owner of the car that hit her to fix the damage. I guess if there was a photo of the vehicle that would help, but of course those transponders could be used on more than one car, making it harder. Don’t know if the person has to register the license #s of all cars that they plan to use it with or not.
Whoops. This is the earlier article.
Patti.. Just read the O.C Register article . As I said yesterday, justice will pervail. Believe!!
From Wat’s little Sis, Joye