SAN DIEGO — **The video used in this piece and embedded at the bottom of this article is graphic. Viewer discretion should be advised**
San Diego Planning Commissioner Vicki Granowitz and Circulate San Diego stood at the exact site where Granowitz was seriously injured by a distracted driver one year ago. They were back at the site to release the video that shows Granowitz being hit while crossing the street by a distracted driver.
The accident caused Granowitz to be knocked unconscious. She also suffered a concussion, lost several teeth and fractured her knee in two different places. Granowitz says in the video the driver clearly is looking down, not paying any attention at the time of the crash.
To make matters worse, the driver didn’t stop until witnesses ran her down. When the witnesses caught up to the driver and told her she hit a pedestrian, the driver said, “No I didn’t” and drove on. Granowitz also said at the sentencing hearing the driver also showed no remorse. She went on to say the driver was only concerned about losing her license.
Granowitz and Circulate San Diego called the City of San Diego to prioritize Vision Zero, an initiative that has a goal of ending all traffic deaths by 2025. She says she wants the city to make the street safer with crosswalks that are better marked so people can see them. She also wants roundabouts to be installed so cars are unable to drive as fast as they currently do.
Granowitz’s message for drivers is simple, “please don’t be distracted while driving. Not even for a moment because that is all it takes in this type of situation.”