On Halloween, your neighborhood will be crawling with children dressed as ghosts, goblins, vampires, etc. It is your job as a driver to make sure that these children are able to navigate the roadways and sidewalks safely when trick-or-treating. Although the children are usually dressed in costumes of make believe characters the safety concerns are very real.
Recent studies have shown that pedestrian deaths of children are four times greater on Halloween. It should be noted that in general, most pedestrian accidents involving children occur between 4:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. - prime time trick-or-treating hours. Additionally of concern is that most pedestrian deaths involving children happen at non-intersections - meaning that most children are darting out into the street when they are struck by autos. Obviously, it is extremely important that all drivers use extreme caution on Halloween to avoid car accidents.
Some simple tips to follow are to stay off cell phones when driving through your neighborhood and to drive well under the speed limit during trick-or-treating hours.
We at The Citron Law Firm wish all our friends and clients a happy and safe Halloween.