On November 2, 2019, I was driving a truck on Highway 4 approaching Highway 80. I was driving a Ford f250 Four Wheel Drive Pickup Super Duty (F250).
As I approached the GORE ZONE I came upon a vehicle driven by Ricky Chiu (CHIU). I was driving approximately 50 miles per hour. It is illegal to be in the Gore Zone.
The gore zone is the triangular area located in between the lanes of a highway and either an entrance or an exit ramp. They are at their narrowest point when the entrance ramp joins the highway and when the exit ramp first leaves it, and slowly widen as the ramp pulls away. California Vehicle Code 21651 (a) VC prohibits drivers from driving on, or crossing over, the dividing section on a divided California roadway.
When I was approximately 50 feet from Chiu, Chiu entered the roadway in front of me without turn signals.
The video was recorded by a dash cam mounted in the truck. The dash cam records video in short segments of time. In the crash the dash cam became dislodged from the windshield and the power supply was cut off. The video that would have shown the actual crash was corrupted and I was unable to recover that video.
CLICK HERE TO SEE WHERE I BECAME AIRBORNE OFF THE EDGE OF THE HIGHWAY
There were motorcyclists to my right so I did not drive to my right. I did not drive into the gore zone because at the speed I was traveling and the fact that gore zones are typically filled with gravel and road debris I would not have been able to stop in time without hitting Chiu or something else or even flipping my truck. I drove off the left side the highway in the hopes of driving down the embankment. But I misjudged. When Chiu pulled in front of me I had less than a second to decide what to do. At the speed I was traveling I shot off the edge of the highway and at one point the truck was about 12 feet in the air and then I crashed (Crashed) into the ground. My truck stayed on it’s wheels after doing a lot of bouncing. I credit the toughness of the F250 with saving my life.
After crashing the F250 came to rest at a point where I could see the roadway that CHIU had driven into. I observed CHIU driving away. I was able to get the F250 started and followed Chiu. After driving more than 15 miles Chiu went to a restaurant for dinner. Chiu had almost killed me and did not care. As of December 14, 2021, I still suffer pain and headaches form the crash.
CHIU went to have dinner at a restaurant where I contacted him. When I contacted CHIU, CHIU explained to me that he can’t see well at night due to Diabetes.
CHIU TELLING ME HE CAN’T SEE WELL AT NIGHT DUE TO DIABETES
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Please excuse the following bad language. If CHIU can’t see well at night WHAT THE FUCK IS HE DOING DRIVING AT NIGHT !!!!!!!
CHIU provided me with paperwork claiming that Chiu was insured via State Farm Insurance. Chiu was not insured by State Farm.
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I later discovered that CHIU was in fact insured by CSE Insurance (CSE). When I contacted CSE I was informed that CSE was denying coverage because CHIU had provided a statement to CSE wherein CHIU stated that he never saw me. I believe CHIU was being honest with CSE, CHIU did not see me due to his bad vision. I was injured in the crash. I hit the driver’s side window with my head and was bleeding but did not discover it until later when I went home and removed my hat. I’ve spoken with CSE on more than one occasion and have been told that since I did not hit CHIU they were denying coverage.
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CSE representative informed that CSE would comply with California law. CSE has not complied with California Law. I feel that CSE has committed fraud.
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The F250 sustained more than $15,000 in damage. I’ve collapsed twice at Home Depot and have been taken to hospital via ambulance, I currently have medical bills over $13,000 related to both hospital trips. What I now know from Doctor Dulberg is that I had an undiagnosed concussion. In the crash I lost over $8,000 in tools that were in the bed of the truck plus camera gear in the bed of the truck. Camera gear I had in the truck was damaged.
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The F250 has flex pipes as part of the exhaust system. Flex tubes allow for movement between the engine and the exhaust system. What I did not know was that the flex tubes were damaged and leaking carbon monoxide into the cab of the truck.
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The two times I was taken to the hospital after collapsing at Home Depot it was after I had driven for hours and had breathed enough Carbon Monoxide to cause me to collapse at Home Depot.
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I have had continuous headaches every day since the crash. I have not had one night of good sleep since the crash.
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CSE continues to refuse to accept liability for the crash.
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