School Board Loses $4.25M Appeal In Crash That Killed Hunterdon County Woman

SOMERVILLE, NJ — The Bridgewater-Raritan School District lost its appeal of a $4.25 million decision in a lawsuit filed by a widower, after a district employee struck and killed his wife in a Somerville crosswalk four years ago.

Jonathan McConnachie of Annandale filed an initial lawsuit on behalf of his wife Christine, 52, who died after being hit by a van in July of 2018.

Mr. McConnachie listed the driver of the van, the Bridgewater-Raritan School District, and the borough of Somerville in the lawsuit, which was originally filed in March of 2019.

In November 2020, Superior Court Judge Thomas C. Miller dismissed the district's claim that Somerville Borough should be liable for Christine McConnachie's death because of conditions at the intersection. The district did not follow state procedure for filing a claim, the court ruled.

Miller issued a final judgment in January 2021 that the Board of Education must make a $4.25 million payment to Christine McConnachie's estate through its insurance carrier.

On July 8, of this year, three Superior Court of New Jersey judges rejected the Bridgewater-Raritan Regional Board of Education's appeal of Miller's decision.

"The record does not indicate whether the Board provided plaintiff with "fair notice" of its intention to shift blame and allocate fault to the Borough," judges wrote in a per curiam decision. "Regardless, the issue became moot upon the Board's settlement with plaintiff."

According to court documents:

Christine McConnachie was in the crosswalk at the intersection of Grove Street and East Main Street (Route 28) in Somerville at 9 a.m. on July 31, 2018 when the driver of a van took a wide left turn and hit her, causing fatal injuries.

The driver of that van was Robert W. Moser, who was working as a maintenance man for the Bridgewater-Raritan School District and using a district vehicle. He was on his way from a hardware store to Adamsville Elementary School, traveling east on Main Street and making a left turn onto northbound Grove Street. Moser said he was driving 15 miles per hour and "stayed close to the middle of the road because he was worried about someone exiting one of the several parked cars in front of the Somerset Hotel."

Moser testified he knew the crosswalk was there because "he made a left turn from Main Street onto Grove Street a couple of times a week for the past thirty years."

Moser said he should have stopped and looked for pedestrians, but did not do so. He also said he avoided unsafe intersections when driving because the work van did not have side windows, and said "he never had a problem making left turn from Main Street onto Grove Street at any point in past.

Jonathan McConnachie claimed Moser was negligent in driving the van, which caused his wife's death. McConnachie also claimed the district and board of education were liable, because Moser worked for them.

The day of the accident, a pedestrian crosswalk ran across Grove Street, and a yellow diagonal crosshatch painted on the road "narrowed to solid double yellow lines about thirty feet from the crosswalk."

In February 2007, the borough of Somerville authorized the removal of a raised concrete island that was once in the median, for the Tour de Somerville bicycle race, and replaced it with road markings and four-foot yellow plastic pylons around the perimeter. However:

"Prior to the subject accident, the pylons were removed; however, the Borough disclaims any knowledge of when or why this occurred," court documents say. "Also prior to the subject accident, three other pedestrian-vehicle accidents occurred at the intersection of Grove Street and Main Street."

The borough told the state Department of Transportation (NJDOT) in May 2017 that there were "serious safety concerns" about that intersection. In particular, borough representatives mentioned how drivers don't slow down when they make turns, and take the turns too wide. Borough administrators said they believed "something must be done to prevent a fatality in the future."

The Department of Transportation is planning a project to improve pedestrian safety at the intersection, but construction is not scheduled to begin until 2025.

The Bridgewater-Raritan Board of Education supplied a report from an accident reconstructionst who determined, " to a reasonable degree of engineering and scientific certainty, that the subject accident would have been avoided, if the traffic pylons remained in place." The board filed a third-party complaint for contribution against Somerville, alleging the borough should be held partially responsible for McConnachie's death because of the "dangerous condition" of the crosswalk.

Judge Miller dismissed this claim in 2020 and then issued his summary judgment that the district must pay $4.25 million on Jan. 5, 2021. Miller also ordered all claims against Moser are dismissed with prejudice.

The board filed its appeal later in January, and the case was argued February 16, 2022 before Judges Hoffman, Whipple and Susswein. The court released its decision July 8.

As mycentraljersey.com reports, the Somerville Police Department charged Moser with reckless driving, making an improper turn, and failing to yield to a pedestrian after the accident.

Moser ended up pleading guilty to one of these charges, paid about $240 in fines and costs, and had his license revoked for four months, the report says.