Student files suit against university

A university student, who was involved in a near-fatal traffic accident after a collision between his bicycle and a DOTS truck, is now pursuing a civil claim against the university.

On Sept. 19, Maryland State Police responded to reports that senior engineering and mathematics major Michael Willems had collided with a Department of Transportation Services vehicle while riding his bicycle as he crossed over Rossborough Lane. Willems, who was left with a brain injury and no memory of the two weeks following the accident, is seeking compensation from the university and alleges that the DOTS driver, Daniel Pennington, filed a false report after the incident.

According to the police report, Pennington was turning left from the southbound lane of Route 1 onto Rossborough Lane when the two collided. Although Willems was wearing a helmet, he said he was transported to Washington Hospital Center around 8:40 p.m. that night in critical condition. Pennington, who was not injured in the incident, was the only one able to speak to police about what happened. Willems and his lawyer are arguing that several holes and discrepancies in the police report indicate Pennington filed a false report.

"It was based off the driver alone because there was no other witness," Willems' lawyer Jon Sargent said. "[Willems] was transported, he wasn't coherent, and he had head injuries. The bottom line is that everything came from the driver who had every reason to present the facts in the light most favorable to himself."

Pennington, a student at this university, could not be reached for comment for this article. According to court documents, Pennington has 15 traffic offenses in this state including failure to stop at a stop sign, driving in excess of a reasonable and prudent speed on a highway, driving 79 miles per hour in a posted 55 miles per hour zone, driving with unauthorized window tinting and failing to stop at a red traffic light, among others.

Because Willems was listed as the faulty party in the accident report, Pennington's record does not include the Sept. 19 incident. According to DOTS Director David Allen, Pennington is still an employee.

Allen said his department checks its drivers' traffic records before and during employment with DOTS. The department follows the same rules as the state when revoking an employee's drivers license due to accumulated traffic points, he said.

Allen would not confirm how long Pennington, a Gaithersburg native, has been a driver for DOTS or whether his collision with Willems was his first on the job, but court documents list several incidents that occurred in College Park and were filed with University Police. Court documents also show that Pennington's first traffic violation — listed as speeding — was April 13, 2008, and his most recent violation — again, speeding — was Sept. 16, 2011, just three days before his accident with Willems.

According to the report, Willems was riding on the northbound Route 1 sidewalk when he "exited off the sidewalk through the cross walk ramp to cross Route 1 but continued northbound [across Rossborough Lane]."

But Willems said this could not be accurate, as he was training for an Ironman competition and was riding a bike that is made only for riding in the street, not on the sidewalk.

"[Pennington] claimed that I was riding on the sidewalk, which I never do on that bike, and then I veered out into the road to hit the truck," Willems said. "Where I was in the intersection was consistent with where I would be if I was traveling in the right lane of the street, where cyclists should be."

The report also states Willems and his bicycle ran into the front right side of the DOTS truck. But Willems and Sargent say this is impossible, as his bicycle was snapped in half sideways.

"The actual bike itself was buckled in half," Willems said. "That's inconsistent with the idea that I hit the driver. [The report] also said that they noticed dents on the front hood of the car of the DOTS truck, but it also says I ran into the side."

Sargent added that no police photos were taken of the damage or the scene of the accident. He also said that the report lists the time of the accident as 9:40 p.m., when the collision actually occurred at 8:40 p.m.