N.J. Gov.'s SUV Went 91 Mph Before Crash

[thedrifter]

N.J. Gov.'s SUV Went 91 Mph Before Crash

By ANGELA DELLI SANTI

TRENTON, N.J. - The sport utility vehicle carrying Gov. Jon S. Corzine was traveling about 91 mph moments before it crashed, the superintendent of state police said Tuesday.

The governor was critically injured when the vehicle crashed into a guardrail on the Garden State Parkway just north of Atlantic City last week. He apparently was not wearing his seat belt as he rode in the front passenger's seat.

The speed limit along that stretch of the parkway is 65 mph.


The state trooper-driven SUV was in the left lane with its emergency lights flashing when a pickup tried to get out of its way. Instead, it set off a chain reaction that resulted in the crash.

Initial reports of the crash said that the governor's SUV was clipped by a vehicle that swerved to avoid a red pickup truck that officials said was being driven erratically.

Corzine broke his left thigh bone, 11 ribs, collarbone and chest bone. He also fractured a vertebra in his lower back.

He remained in critical but stable condition Tuesday and doctors were assessing when he might be ready to breathe without a ventilator. Spokesman Anthony Coley said Tuesday the governor was showing improvement.

Doctors have said he doesn't have brain damage or paralysis, and is doing well for someone who sustained so many injuries.

The driver, Trooper Robert Rasinski, could be charged if the state police Motor Vehicular Pursuit Review Board determines the crash was preventable, Superintendent of State Police Col. Rick Fuentes said.

Fuentes said speed was a factor in the accident. A black box inside the SUV recorded the speed of the SUV five seconds before the crash. He said the executive protection unit has the discretion to move through traffic by stepping up their speed and using flashing lights when necessary.

"If it's a non-emergency situation, we would ask them to obey the traffic laws and the speed laws in the interest of safety," he said.

Rasinski and an aide to the governor were not seriously hurt. The trooper will remain out of work until he is cleared by a doctor to return, Fuentes said.

The driver of the pickup truck was not charged.

Even with Corzine badly injured, many people are amazed he wouldn't follow the law and buckle up.

"With all due respect to the governor and with complete compassion in mind for the injuries he sustained, he has set a poor example," said David Weinstein, AAA Mid-Atlantic spokesman.

Corzine has been a proponent of seat belt usage. As a U.S. senator in 2001, Corzine proposed having the federal government direct states to pass laws requiring children under age 16 to wear seat belts.

New Jersey law requires drivers and front seat passengers wear a seat belt. Violators face a $46 fine.

There is no timetable for when Corzine may be able to resume governing the state. Sen. President Richard J. Codey is acting governor.

Once Corzine is breathing unassisted, he should be able to speak. That milestone would make it possible for physical therapists to do more to help him regain use of his leg _ a process expected to take up to six months.

Corzine, a 60-year-old former investment banker, gave up his seat in the U.S. Senate to become governor in 2006.

Associated Press writers Geoff Mulvihill in Camden and Tom Hester Jr. in Trenton contributed to this report.

A service of the Associated Press(AP)

Ellie

[thedrifter]

Frustration over Corzine not buckling up
By TOM HESTER Jr., Associated Press Writer

TRENTON, N.J. - Last year, New Jersey law officers ticketed 271,182 people for not wearing seat belts in violation of state law. This year, one will stand out: Gov. Jon S. Corzine, who was critically injured in an automobile accident last week.

David Wald, spokesman for state Attorney General Stuart Rabner, wouldn't say why state police assigned to protect the governor didn't insist Corzine obey the seat belt law.

"As always, we urge all drivers and passengers to wear seat belts," Wald said.

Corzine, 60, broke multiple bones in the wreck and remains hospitalized in intensive care, breathing with the help of a respirator.

There was another revelation Tuesday that is likely to add to talk about the governor's accident — Corzine's SUV was going 91 mph in a 65 mph zone just before the crash, according to state police.

Many people are amazed Corzine didn't follow the law and buckle up.

"With all due respect to the governor and with complete compassion in mind for the injuries he sustained, he has set a poor example," said David Weinstein, AAA Mid-Atlantic spokesman.

The governor, in fact, has been a proponent of seat belt usage.

As a U.S. senator in 2001, Corzine proposed having the federal government direct states to pass laws requiring children under age 16 wear seat belts.

New Jersey law requires drivers and front seat passengers to wear seat belts. Violators face a $46 fine.

State police said Trooper Robert Rasinski, Corzine's driver, was wearing a seat belt and received minor injuries in the wreck, while Corzine aide Samantha Gordon was riding in the back seat without a seat belt and received minor injuries.

The accident report notes only Corzine was "thrown within the vehicle during the impact."

Tom Shea, Corzine's chief of staff, has said the governor should be ticketed if he wasn't buckled up.

He's not the only one who thinks so.

Tricia Tim, a 35-year-old medical assistant who was in Newark traffic court to settle a speeding ticket Tuesday, said she was disappointed in her governor.

"He's a governor," Tim said. "He should have been showing us an example. I wear my seat belt all the time."

Chris Lamm, who waited in line in Newark to pay a ticket for an improper turn, said he was surprised Corzine wasn't strapped in considering he rides with a state trooper.

"I hope he's learned something from this ordeal," said Lamm, a 24-year-old transportation planner from Montclair.

According to federal statistics, New Jersey has one of the highest rates in the nation for seat belt usage, at 90 percent in 2006. The national average is 81 percent, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

New Jersey state and local police are about to begin a "Click It or Ticket" campaign to encourage more seat belt use. The campaign was planned before Corzine's accident.

Lisa Lewis, founder of the Partnership for Safe Driving, questioned whether a seat belt would have helped Corzine, because his vehicle was traveling so fast.

"Seat belts are not designed to protect us in crashes at very high speeds," Lewis said.

Some people are hopeful Corzine — once he recovers from injuries that include a broken leg, ribs, collarbone and sternum — can turn his accident into a message about the importance of using seat belts.

"He could be the poster child to make people listen, to show that traffic crashes and the injuries you get in them if you're not wearing your seat belt can hit anyone," Weinstein said.

Associated Press writer Janet Frankston Lorin in Newark contributed to this story.

Ellie