A technician who tragically struck a pedestrian and caused her death while test-driving a customer’s car after an oil change has failed to overturn his conviction for “careless driving involving unintentional death.” The Superior Court of Pennsylvania upheld Liam Crosby’s conviction and imposed a $500 fine for the incident that occurred on September 7, 2021. The victim, 89-year-old Susan Simpson, was fatally hit by a 2018 Nissan Armada while walking on the sidewalk. In addition to the fine, Crosby’s driver’s license has been suspended for six months.
Under state law, the charge is classified as a summary offense and is considered less serious than a misdemeanor since it falls under the category of a nontraffic crime. At the time of the accident, Crosby had been employed at Piazza Nissan of Ardmore for seven months, according to the court’s decision.
The Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office stated in a court filing that road testing, servicing, and re-testing a customer’s vehicle before returning it was a regular part of Crosby’s duties. Therefore, his actions on that fateful day were within the scope of his job responsibilities.
Crosby left the dealership’s parking lot and entered a busy four-lane road when the incident occurred. He informed the police that he was familiar with the area and witnessed people walking on the sidewalk every day. Furthermore, he claimed to have driven his road test route approximately 10 to 15 times per day.
The evidence presented during the trial included testimonies from Piazza Nissan’s general manager and a crash reconstruction expert. In addition, video footage from the dealership’s surveillance camera and images from police body cameras were also considered.
During the appeal, Crosby argued that while he may have been negligent and could potentially face civil liability for Simpson’s death, his actions did not meet the threshold of “careless disregard” or “willful or wanton conduct” necessary for a conviction.
In a decision dated August 24, the Superior Court disagreed, stating, “The driver failed to exercise the required level of attentiveness and consideration for human life: a pedestrian was legally and reasonably expected to cross the vehicle’s path, and the driver had an obligation to yield.”
The decision concluded, “Crosby’s failure to meet this obligation constituted careless disregard, which was sufficient to support a conviction for careless driving.”
Although defense attorney Christopher Boggs of Media, Penn., expressed disappointment with the ruling, he acknowledged that the court had addressed all the arguments raised during the appeal.
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