News

Aug 04, 2023

Rochester NY to pay $11M to Pittsford man maimed by garbage truck

The City of Rochester has agreed to an $11 million settlement — the second largest settlement in city history — with a Pittsford man who lost his legs after he was run over by a city garbage truck in

The City of Rochester has agreed to an $11 million settlement — the second largest settlement in city history — with a Pittsford man who lost his legs after he was run over by a city garbage truck in 2018.

The victim, Craig Levin, "suffered extensive catastrophic injuries," his lawyer wrote in court papers, including "a below-the-knee amputation of his right leg, an above-the-knee amputation of his left leg," traumatic brain injury and severe injuries to a hand.

The city agreed to a settlement with Levin on the eve of a trial in June, but details were not finalized until this week, court records show. City Corporation Counsel Linda Kingsley acknowledged Thursday that the settlement was $11 million after a public records access request was filed by the Democrat and Chronicle and court records, filed Thursday, showed that the litigation had been resolved without a trial.

The city also said in a statement provided to the Democrat and Chronicle: "The lawsuit filed against the City of Rochester by Mr. Craig Levin and his family has been settled. A Freedom of Information (FOIL) request was submitted to confirm the amount of the settlement, which was $11 million. The City determined this was the best resolution to the tragic accident that occurred in 2018."

The largest city settlement was $12 million, given by the city last year to family members of Daniel Prude. Prude in 2020 died about a week after being pinned to the ground by city police — a death that the medical examiner's office determined was partly caused by asphyxiation from the restraint.

Levin was crossing Chestnut Street at the East Avenue intersection the afternoon of Dec. 19, 2018, when he was struck by the truck. Firefighters had to extricate him from underneath the garbage truck's rear wheels before he could be taken to the hospital. The truck, when empty, weighs nearly 37,000 pounds.

In February, state Supreme Court Justice Christopher Ciaccio ruled that the city and the driver, Vincent Paolotto, were negligent. The June trial would have determined how much of the liability was shouldered by the city and how much it would pay.

Court records show that Paolotto, said he heard "a thump" under the truck and saw witnesses screaming after he made a turn onto Chestnut and hit Levin.

One witness testified in a deposition that she saw Levin look before entering the crosswalk, then saw the truck making a turn toward him. "Then it was like slow motion, what happened," said the woman, who was in a car.

"I just started yelling," she said of the seconds before the truck struck Levin. "I'm like screaming stop, stop, because it was like slow motion of him hitting him."

In the deposition, available in court records, the witness was asked, "And after he struck the pedestrian with the left front of the vehicle, did he stop immediately?"

"No, he kept going," she said. "... The lady that was in the car in front of me was screaming too. She actuallyhopped out of her car as he's going. And she's screaming and I'm screaming."

Other witnesses also yelled at the driver to stop, she testified.

In a deposition, Levin, who worked as an attorney at state Mental Hygiene Legal Services, said he remembered nothing of the accident except that a co-worker was there to hold his hand afterward.

Levin's attorneys at the firm of Phillips Lytle LLP declined to comment.

Records show that city officials planned to fire Paolotto because of the accident. He resigned from the job.

The city is self-insured and payments will be made from its insurance fund.