Lawyer Chases Down Columnist Novak After Accident

Tort Law

Lawyer Chases Down Columnist Novak After Accident

Posted Jul 23, 2008, 01:03 pm CST
By Martha Neil

Updated: After syndicated columnist Robert Novak reportedly hit a homeless pedestrian with his car Wednesday morning and didn't immediately stop, an attorney on a bicycle chased him down.

"The bicyclist was David Bono, a partner at Harkins Cunningham, who was on his usual bike commute to work at 1700 K St. N.W. when he witnessed the accident," reports the Politico.

Novak, 77, who was ticketed for a right-of-way violation, told authorities he didn't realize he'd hit the 86-year-old pedestrian until Bono caught up with him, according to the article and the Washington Post. He apparently said that the pedestrian was crossing against the light.

However, Bono says the pedestrian, who was crossing the street on a walk signal, was on Novak's windshield at one point, the Politico writes. Novak, according to Bono, was "trying to get away," and stopped only after Bono put his bike in front of the car, to block it. Traffic reportedly was heavy and moving slowly at the time of the accident.

The pedestrian was not seriously injured and told a radio reporter on Thursday that he's doing fine. He also seemed surprised to learn that Novak was the one who hit him, the Washington Post reports in a follow up story today.

"Bob Novak is the one that hit me?" Don Clifford Liljenquist said to WMAL (630 AM). "Well, everybody knows who Bob Novak is! He's a famous journalist! . . . I was struck by Bob Novak? . . . Well, I think that makes it a great story!"

Novak, who drives a sports car, has a reputation of being an aggressive driver.

But Liljenquist told WMAL that it's possible Novak didn't realize he'd hit him.

"The vehicle was moving at 10 miles per hour or something like that, and the driver might not have seen me, because I rolled off and fell down to the pavement. So, yeah, it's possible that he didn't see me. He wasn't paying attention to his driving."

Subsequent coverage:

ABAJournal.com: "Columnist Chased by Lawyer, After Accident, Has Brain Tumor"

Updated at 9:50 a.m. Friday to add new details and to correct Liljenquist's age, which initially was reported by police to be 66. Corrected at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday to note that Novak is a columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times. Updated at 5:30 p.m., Monday, July 28, 2008, to include link to subsequent ABAJournal.com post.

Comments

Report Abuse

Posted by Al DeMeola - 3 months, 4 weeks, 23 hours, 22 minutes ago

Get that old codger off the road. Who is this twerp anyway? I think he’s a news column man, but obviously ought to be off the road. The old fart can’t see—why is he driving? And who does he think he is, god? Hit on the windshield and didn’t realize he hit someone? Give me a break! Throw the book at that old scuzball!
Posted by buckeyeduke - 3 months, 4 weeks, 22 hours, 31 minutes ago

Dear Ms. Neil (author), I don’t usually expect to get my news from the ABA journal, but when you “report” on a story, and you cite 4 separate facts only to conclude with “Novak . . . has a reputation of being an aggressive driver,“ it looks more like a blog gossip column than a professional publication intended to inform your readership. (big assumption, I know) Novak has a “reputation” according to whom? What previous facts or driving history did your investigation dig up that would support that claim…or did you mearly compile a string of quotes from other sources and hope some semblance of a narrative would emerge? It’s a small complaint, I realize, but starts me thinking: are you bound to some miniscule word limit? Why do I always come away from ABA journal story feeling like 85% of the story was missed? Is it your intention to spur me to other more credible sources of news to find out relevant details, or to simply begin deleting my email from the ABA? Either way, you’re doing great job. If I can get clearer, more probing stories with a 10 second Google search, what’s the friggin point of the electronic ABA journal? Maybe I’m expecting too much from the ABA, but it sure would be nice to open a story and get some supportable facts and cogent analysis.
Posted by anon - 3 months, 4 weeks, 22 hours, 27 minutes ago

Dear buckeyeduke:
Novak’s reputation for being an “aggressive driver” comes from alleged accounts that he has stated that he “hates pedestrians” and “wants them off the road” - quoting such things would make the story sound even more like a gossip column. Ms. Neil politely and appropriately summed it up without quoting off-the-cuff comments.
Posted by TSH - 3 months, 4 weeks, 22 hours, 25 minutes ago

buckeyeduke - these stores are all summaries and have links to the stories they summarize. If you clicked through, you’d see that Novak basically admitted (earlier) to being an aggressive driver. Maybe it’s too much to expect one to click through to the articles being summarized.
Posted by SH - 3 months, 4 weeks, 21 hours, 21 minutes ago

The Wash Post reports that the pedestrian was 86, not 66.
Posted by James E. Barlow - 3 months, 4 weeks, 20 hours, 19 minutes ago

Fleeing the scene after injuring someone is a felony under Texas law. I don’t know what it may be in Washington. Maybe there is “prominance” defense there, who knows..
Posted by Andy the Lawyer - 3 months, 4 weeks, 20 hours, 12 minutes ago

Perhaps Mr. Bono mistook Mr. Novak’s vehicle for an ambulance.
Posted by Joseph Wilson - 3 months, 4 weeks, 18 hours, 25 minutes ago

Maybe Novak was being chased by a grand jury.
Posted by Super Lawyer 2008 - 3 months, 4 weeks, 18 hours, 2 minutes ago

Um . . . the guy with a reputation for aggressive driving was driving a sports car at 10mph? And then didin’t realize that a human body on his windshield meant that he hit someone? And then the pedestrian was impressed with the identity of the driver who ran into him? Sounds like the beginnings of an ADEA alternative lifestyle love story.
Posted by ConstantListener - 3 months, 4 weeks, 17 hours, 32 minutes ago

WMAL posted the entire interview with the gentleman who was struck by Novak at:
http://wmal.com/Article.asp?id=807132
Posted by Doneil - 3 months, 4 weeks, 17 hours, 16 minutes ago

Bob Novak probably thought the guy on his windshield was a CIA operative, and seeking to protect his identity felt it was best not to stop. Bob Novak is a real patriot.

Commenting is not available in this weblog entry.

ABA Journal - Law News Now

Tort Law