Today in the Apocalypse: Hartford Hit And Run

Posted by Brian Fairbanks

 

We aren't kidding when we say this will mess with your head.

Has anyone ever seen The Death of Mr. Lazarescu? It's an amazing, very, very dark "comedy" about a man who is ill and tries to seek medical treatment, only to be delayed, denied, and dead by the end of the film. (If anyone thinks we're giving away anything, they obviously did not read the name of the film carefully.)

This police surveillance video depicts what is clearly one of the craziest examples of (in)humanity ever documented in the YouTube era and a real-life Lazarescu moment...

After a seventy-eight-year-old man was hit by one of two street racers driving erratically on the wrong side of the road.

Pedestrians gawk but do nothing. One driver stops briefly but then pulls back into traffic. A man on a scooter slowly circles the victim before zipping away.

The victim, Angel Arce Torres, was in critical condition in Hartford Hospital. Authorities say he is paralyzed.

See the three-minute video, which ends with the police finally responding to the scene... by coincidence only, having been on another call... 

Via WTIC and Hartford Police. 


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Posted Jun 06 2008, 04:30 PM
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Comments

Sarah said:

I read about this in my newspaper this morning. The police have confirmed that four calls to 911 were placed within one minute of the accident. However, that does nothing to excuse the people just standing on the sidewalk staring or the motorists who just drove around. Disgusting people.

June 6, 2008 5:15 PM

fitandfun71 said:

I lived in Hartford for several years and I'm sadly not surprised by the video especially taking into account the neighborhood where the incident took place.  

June 7, 2008 4:15 AM

chachina said:

Every one of those people should be arrested as accomplices to the crime for neglecting to perform their civic duty and help that man. I am disgusted.

June 7, 2008 3:04 PM

Ian said:

Kitty Genovese wouldn't be surprised

June 7, 2008 4:37 PM

emyrej said:

I agree it looks pretty bad, but I'm just wondering--without medical training, what were the people supposed to do other than call 911?  And what were the cars supposed to do except keep going and get out of the way?  I suppose someone could have gone out and waved cars away, and maybe check to see if he was actively bleeding (although with the disease issue these days, I don' know how quick I would be to staunch arterial bleeding without gloves).

June 8, 2008 2:44 PM

Abbie said:

Anyone that lives in a city (and saw the man lying on the ground, but didn't see the hit and run) would not have implicated themselves.  It's common sense. Sure it's not the most humane thing, but if you don't know how he got there or what happened to him, the best you can do is call 911 and the worst is to risk putting your own life in danger.

June 8, 2008 6:11 PM

About Brian Fairbanks

Brian Fairbanks, the Senior National Political Correspondent for Nerve, is a filmmaker living in Brooklyn or New Orleans, depending on the season. He is a heavily-armed advocate of gun control.

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