Maplewood Crossing Guard, Resident In Crosswalk Hit By Lexus

MAPLEWOOD, NJ - An 89-year-old resident and a 59-year-old crossing guard are recovering from their injuries after a black Lexus SUV struck them while crossing the street during the snow squall Wednesday, according to Maplewood Chief of Police James DeVaul.

According to DeVaul, police responded to a motor vehicle accident call shortly after 3:15 p.m. Wednesday at the intersection of Springfield Avenue and Burnett Avenue. Upon arrival, patrol determined that two women pedestrians were struck by a vehicle as they were crossing the street in a crosswalk. One of the two was a crossing guard, DeVaul said.

According to DeVaul, the crossing guard was assisting a resident across Springfield Avenue and they were struck by a black Lexus SUV that was turning left onto Springfield Avenue from Burnett Avenue.

Both pedestrians sustained non-life threatening injuries and were transported to Newark University Hospital for further treatment, DeVaul said. The driver of the vehicle told officers at the scene that she did not see the pedestrians due to the winter weather conditions at the time, DeVaul said.

According to DeVaul, the crossing guard was wearing a reflective coat and led with her hand held stop sign at the time they were crossing the street and at the time they were struck.

The driver of the Lexus, 30-year-old Christine Wood was issued summons for careless driving, failure to yield to pedestrians in a crosswalk and failure to comply with a crossing guard's directions.

DeVaul said the crossing guard was treated and released but the resident is recovering from a "serious leg injury." Their names, DeVaul said, are not going to be released at this time.

(Photo courtesy of Shutterstock)

Thanks for reading! Learn more about posting announcements or events to your local Patch site here. Have a news tip you'd like to share? Or maybe you have a press release you would like to submit or a correction you'd like to request? Send an email to russ.crespolini@patch.com

Subscribe to your local Patch newsletter by clicking here. You can also have them delivered to your phone screen by downloading our Apple iOS app here, or by visiting the Google Play store for the Android app here.