Preview
FILED: SUFFOLK COUNTY CLERK 09/08/2022 12:27 PM INDEX NO. 611214/2015
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 1042 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 09/08/2022
"A"
EXHIBIT
FILED: SUFFOLK COUNTY CLERK 09/08/2022 12:27 PM INDEX NO. 611214/2015
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 1042 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 09/08/2022
SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK
COUNTY OF SUFFOLK
__..----............................---..----------......._-............____.......Ç
SUZANNE SCHULMAN, AS ADMINISTRATRIX OF THE
ESTATE OF BRITTANY M. SCHULMAN, DECEASED; ALICIA
M. ARUNDEL; OLGA LIPETS; MINDY GRABINA, AS Index No.
ADMINISTRATRIX OF THE ESTATE OF AMY GRABINA, 611214/2015
AND MINDY GRABINA, INDIVIDUALLY; STEVEN BARUCH,
AS ADMINISTRATOR OF THE ESTATE OF LAUREN BARUCH,
DECEASED, AND STEVEN BARUCH, INDIVIDUALLY;
JOELLE DiMONTE; MELISSA A. CRAI; AND ARTHUR A. BELLI,
JR., AS PARENT AND NATURAL GUARDIAN OF STEPHANIE
BELLI, DECEASED, AND AS THE ADMINISTRATOR OF THE
ESTATE OF STEPHANIE BELLl, AFFIDAVIT
Plaintiffs,
- against -
ULTIMATE CLASS LIMOUSINE, INC., CARLOS PINO,
ROMEO DIMON MARINE SERVICE, INC., STEVEN D.
ROMEO, TOWN OF SOUTHOLD, COUNTY OF SUFFOLK,
CABOT COACH BUlLDERS, INC., d/b/a ROYALE LIMOUSINE
1-5"
and "XYZ COMPANIES name being fictitious but intended to
be the remanufacturers, distributors and/or sellers of the 2007
Lincoln Town Car stretch limousine involved in the collision,
Defendants.
.............................____..................................__................x
STATE OF NEW YORK )
) ss.:
COUNTY OF SUFFOLK )
DANIEL J. DRESCH, JR., being duly sworn, deposes and says:
1. That I am presently employed by Greenman Pedersen Inc., a traffic
engineering firm, having retired from the County of Suffolk on December 30,
2021.
2. Upon my retirement from the Suffolk County Department of Public Works
(SCDPW), my titlewas (Acting) Assistant Chief Engineer.
FILED: SUFFOLK COUNTY CLERK 09/08/2022 12:27 PM INDEX NO. 611214/2015
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 1042 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 09/08/2022
3. In 2015, my title was Director of Tra ffic Engineering and Highway Work
Permits.
4. In 2015, I oversaw a staff of technicians and engineers who handled various
functions of traffic engineering as well as the highway work pennit process.
5. My Supervisor at the time in question was William Hillman, who was the
Chief Engineer at the SCDPW.
6. I am submitting this affidavit in order to advise the Court that the SCDPW
practiced due diligence in terms of its traffic studies with respect to the
intersection of County Road 48 and Depot Lane in Cutchogue.
7. I am familiar with County Road 48 and particularly at its intersection with
Depot Lane.
8. County Road 48 is an east-west thoroughfare owned and maintained by the
County of Suffolk.
9. Depot Lane is a north-south thoroughfare owned and maintained by the Town
of Southold.
10. On July 18, 2015, traffic was regulated at that intersection by flashing yellow
lights for east-west traffic on County Road 48 and flashing red lights and a
stop sign for north-south traffic on Depot Lane.
11. Traffic control devices were installed by the County of Suffolk but maintained
by the Town of Southold per prior agreement. That was a typical arrangement
between the County and municipalities such as the Town..
12. At the Road 48 - Depot Lane there are two through lanes
County intersection,
for east and westbound traffic along with turning lanes for north and
southbound traffic from both the east and westbound sides ofCounty Road 48.
13. I testified on behalf of the SCDPW in this matter by way of a deposition on
July 17, 2019.
14. Prior thereto, I had been called down and testified before the Special Grand
Jury empaneled by the Suffolk County District Attorney, on April 7, 2016.
I5. Relative to the issue of traffic studies, between 1999 and 2002, we received a
total ofthree requests asking for consideration of upgrading the flashing lights
to a three-color trafficsignal.
-2-
FILED: SUFFOLK COUNTY CLERK 09/08/2022 12:27 PM INDEX NO. 611214/2015
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 1042 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 09/08/2022
16. In that regard, Inote that the SCDPW receives somewhere between 300 to 400
traffic study requests a year.
I7. In response to these three traffic study requests for this particular intersection,
appropriate traffic counts were taken in or about 2001.
18. At that time, the volumes of traffic and crash data were nowhere near the
warrants set forth in the Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices
(MUTCD) by which we are guided for the installation of traffic control
signals.
19. The primary data that is used to warrant the installation of traffic lights is (1)
traffic volumes both on the main road (County Road 48) and the side street
(Depot Lane); and (2) crash history.
20. Crash data is the lifeblood of a traffic study, and as neither volume nor crash
history warrants were met, per protocol, this intersection folder was placed
with the pending files.
2 1. This meant that though it was not going to be closed out, this particular
intersection file was not going to be a priority.
22, Thereafter, in or about 2009 without any new requests having been submitted,
a new engineer on staffwent through some old pending files and wrote me a
note requesting to close the files out since nothing had been heard from
anybody in seven (7) years.
23. The basis for closing the fileout would be that the volumes and accident data
didn't meet the warrants for a three-color signal.
24. Originally, I agreed with the new engineer but then changed my mind and on
second thought, decided to undertake updated machine counts.
25. This intersection was not the only file that was revived but was one of a
number that were in the pending filesand then set up for a second look.
26. Machine counts are taken by those devices you see on the side of the road with
black hoses running across the lanes of traffic.
27. Subsequently, counts were collected in 2012/2013, and thereafter the
engineering staff determined the warrants were stillnot met for a three-color
signal.
FILED: SUFFOLK COUNTY CLERK 09/08/2022 12:27 PM INDEX NO. 611214/2015
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 1042 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 09/08/2022
28. Nevertheless, because the MUTCD permits a forecast based on locally
accepted growth rates, it was decided to prospectively apply a five year
growth factor to the volumes on Depot Lane.
29. That determination would be based on the side streets possibly meeting the
warrant for a three-color signal sometime with five (5)years, and at that point,
the intersection was put on the listfor a three-color traffic light.
30. The list I referred to contains about 75 locations which require a two (2) to
three (3) year lead time to account for design and construction of the signal,
removal of all poles and infrastructure as well as time to perform the
underground work including utilities.
31. This intersection did not even come close to fulfilling the warrants necessary
for the consideration much less the implementation of a left-turn signal.
32. tronically, there was never even a prior request for a left-hand turn signal at
County Road 48 and Depot Lane.
33. Relative to the decision to authorize a three-color light, the basis of same was
that this was the last remaining flashing traffic signal along the County Road
48 corridor. For that reason, we looked favorably upon this five year
projection of the volumes on Depot Lane and used that as a recommendation
to convert the flashing signal to a three-color signal.
34. The light was formally approved on February 5, 2014, with the provision that
the Town of Southold, which needed to pass on it,also was to take over care
and maintenance, which itdid commencing in March of 2016.
35. The light itself was installed in September of 2015, but had been in the
pipeline for a period of time before the accident.
36. Itis important to note that traffic engineering is a data-driven field and though
we respond to all requests, engineering judgment and expertise must be
practiced in black and white and not because of emotion or politics.
37. and in order to quell the furor the we re-
Nevertheless, following accident,
visited the site post-accident on a Saturday in August of 2015, knowing that
the signal itselfwould be installed by September.
38. The idea was that ifthe warrants were met for a left-hand turn phase, a Change
Order could have been issued and a modification undertaken.
39. New volume and turn counts were obtained.
-4-
FILED: SUFFOLK COUNTY CLERK 09/08/2022 12:27 PM INDEX NO. 611214/2015
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 1042 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 09/08/2022
40. However, based on the required analysis, the warrants again were nowhere
near being met for a left-hand tum phase signal.
41. Although itwould not have taken much in the way of electronic and computer
reconfiguration, a left-hand tum signal could not be justified at this
intersection.
42. In other words, without question, itwould have been a significant deviation to
recommend the implementation of a left-turn phase at this intersection since
the warrants set forth by the MUTCD were not met.
43. Insofar as U-tums are concemed, they have been, and stillare legal at the
intersection of County Road 48 and Depot Lane.
44. As with the left-hand tum situation, there was also never a request at any time
for a No U-turn sign at this intersection.
45. As a matter of fact, 1 do not believe we have ever received a request for data
on U-tuming vehicles at any intersection within the jurisdiction of the
SCDPW.
46. As with the left-hand turn situation, there was no history of U-turn accidents
at this intersection for a number of years prior to July 18, 2015.
47. Insofar as the line of sight is concerned, SCDPW is guided by the American
Association of State Highway Transportation Officials (AASHTO).
48. The infonnation garnered during the traffic studies indicated that there was a
recommended 645 foot line of sight for those looking at westbound traffic at
this intersection and the lineof sight was measured to be at least 1,000 feet at
that juncture.
49. In summary, and in my capacity as Director of Traffic Engineering and
Highway Work Permits at the time in question, the volume and crash history
warrants at this intersection were not met for a traffic much less a left-
light,
hand turn light,
50. Nevertheless, the SCDPW decided to be proactive and utilize the five year
projection provision in the MUTCD to authorize the three-color light.
FILED: SUFFOLK COUNTY CLERK 09/08/2022 12:27 PM INDEX NO. 611214/2015
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 1042 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 09/08/2022
51. Unlike the five year growth factor warrant utilized for the approval of the
three-color light, there is no similar provision relative to the installation of a
left-hand tum signal.
52. As noted above, itwould have been a significant deviation from appropriate
traffic engineering judgment to recommend the implementation of a left-hand
tum signal at this intersection based on a lack of requests as well as traffic
volume and crash data.
53, The same engineering judgment protocol applies to not recommending the
issuance of a No U-tum sign. Once again, no requests and no accidents.
54. Based on the foregoing, which is my personal knowledge of what transpired
relative to the SCDPW, itstraffic studies and accurate engineering judgment
were applied appropriately to the intersection of County Road 48 and Depot
Lane as of July I8, 2015.
55. Accordingly, I respectfully request that this Honorable Court grant Summary
Judgment to the County of Suffolk based on the separate grounds ofmunicipal
Qualified Immunity and lack of notice regarding the allegations pertaining to
the intersection in question.
_ -
Daniel J. Dre c , Jr.
Swom to before me this
day of September, 2022.
Notary ablic
CAROL ANN GAt10-RUSSO
Public, State of New York
Notary
No. 01GA4832721
Quahfied in Suffolk County
Commission Expires April30
Preview
FILED: SUFFOLK COUNTY CLERK 09/08/2022 12:27 PM INDEX NO. 611214/2015 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 1042 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 09/08/2022 "A" EXHIBIT FILED: SUFFOLK COUNTY CLERK 09/08/2022 12:27 PM INDEX NO. 611214/2015 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 1042 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 09/08/2022 SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF SUFFOLK __..----............................---..----------......._-............____.......Ç SUZANNE SCHULMAN, AS ADMINISTRATRIX OF THE ESTATE OF BRITTANY M. SCHULMAN, DECEASED; ALICIA M. ARUNDEL; OLGA LIPETS; MINDY GRABINA, AS Index No. ADMINISTRATRIX OF THE ESTATE OF AMY GRABINA, 611214/2015 AND MINDY GRABINA, INDIVIDUALLY; STEVEN BARUCH, AS ADMINISTRATOR OF THE ESTATE OF LAUREN BARUCH, DECEASED, AND STEVEN BARUCH, INDIVIDUALLY; JOELLE DiMONTE; MELISSA A. CRAI; AND ARTHUR A. BELLI, JR., AS PARENT AND NATURAL GUARDIAN OF STEPHANIE BELLI, DECEASED, AND AS THE ADMINISTRATOR OF THE ESTATE OF STEPHANIE BELLl, AFFIDAVIT Plaintiffs, - against - ULTIMATE CLASS LIMOUSINE, INC., CARLOS PINO, ROMEO DIMON MARINE SERVICE, INC., STEVEN D. ROMEO, TOWN OF SOUTHOLD, COUNTY OF SUFFOLK, CABOT COACH BUlLDERS, INC., d/b/a ROYALE LIMOUSINE 1-5" and "XYZ COMPANIES name being fictitious but intended to be the remanufacturers, distributors and/or sellers of the 2007 Lincoln Town Car stretch limousine involved in the collision, Defendants. .............................____..................................__................x STATE OF NEW YORK ) ) ss.: COUNTY OF SUFFOLK ) DANIEL J. DRESCH, JR., being duly sworn, deposes and says: 1. That I am presently employed by Greenman Pedersen Inc., a traffic engineering firm, having retired from the County of Suffolk on December 30, 2021. 2. Upon my retirement from the Suffolk County Department of Public Works (SCDPW), my titlewas (Acting) Assistant Chief Engineer. FILED: SUFFOLK COUNTY CLERK 09/08/2022 12:27 PM INDEX NO. 611214/2015 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 1042 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 09/08/2022 3. In 2015, my title was Director of Tra ffic Engineering and Highway Work Permits. 4. In 2015, I oversaw a staff of technicians and engineers who handled various functions of traffic engineering as well as the highway work pennit process. 5. My Supervisor at the time in question was William Hillman, who was the Chief Engineer at the SCDPW. 6. I am submitting this affidavit in order to advise the Court that the SCDPW practiced due diligence in terms of its traffic studies with respect to the intersection of County Road 48 and Depot Lane in Cutchogue. 7. I am familiar with County Road 48 and particularly at its intersection with Depot Lane. 8. County Road 48 is an east-west thoroughfare owned and maintained by the County of Suffolk. 9. Depot Lane is a north-south thoroughfare owned and maintained by the Town of Southold. 10. On July 18, 2015, traffic was regulated at that intersection by flashing yellow lights for east-west traffic on County Road 48 and flashing red lights and a stop sign for north-south traffic on Depot Lane. 11. Traffic control devices were installed by the County of Suffolk but maintained by the Town of Southold per prior agreement. That was a typical arrangement between the County and municipalities such as the Town.. 12. At the Road 48 - Depot Lane there are two through lanes County intersection, for east and westbound traffic along with turning lanes for north and southbound traffic from both the east and westbound sides ofCounty Road 48. 13. I testified on behalf of the SCDPW in this matter by way of a deposition on July 17, 2019. 14. Prior thereto, I had been called down and testified before the Special Grand Jury empaneled by the Suffolk County District Attorney, on April 7, 2016. I5. Relative to the issue of traffic studies, between 1999 and 2002, we received a total ofthree requests asking for consideration of upgrading the flashing lights to a three-color trafficsignal. -2- FILED: SUFFOLK COUNTY CLERK 09/08/2022 12:27 PM INDEX NO. 611214/2015 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 1042 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 09/08/2022 16. In that regard, Inote that the SCDPW receives somewhere between 300 to 400 traffic study requests a year. I7. In response to these three traffic study requests for this particular intersection, appropriate traffic counts were taken in or about 2001. 18. At that time, the volumes of traffic and crash data were nowhere near the warrants set forth in the Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) by which we are guided for the installation of traffic control signals. 19. The primary data that is used to warrant the installation of traffic lights is (1) traffic volumes both on the main road (County Road 48) and the side street (Depot Lane); and (2) crash history. 20. Crash data is the lifeblood of a traffic study, and as neither volume nor crash history warrants were met, per protocol, this intersection folder was placed with the pending files. 2 1. This meant that though it was not going to be closed out, this particular intersection file was not going to be a priority. 22, Thereafter, in or about 2009 without any new requests having been submitted, a new engineer on staffwent through some old pending files and wrote me a note requesting to close the files out since nothing had been heard from anybody in seven (7) years. 23. The basis for closing the fileout would be that the volumes and accident data didn't meet the warrants for a three-color signal. 24. Originally, I agreed with the new engineer but then changed my mind and on second thought, decided to undertake updated machine counts. 25. This intersection was not the only file that was revived but was one of a number that were in the pending filesand then set up for a second look. 26. Machine counts are taken by those devices you see on the side of the road with black hoses running across the lanes of traffic. 27. Subsequently, counts were collected in 2012/2013, and thereafter the engineering staff determined the warrants were stillnot met for a three-color signal. FILED: SUFFOLK COUNTY CLERK 09/08/2022 12:27 PM INDEX NO. 611214/2015 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 1042 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 09/08/2022 28. Nevertheless, because the MUTCD permits a forecast based on locally accepted growth rates, it was decided to prospectively apply a five year growth factor to the volumes on Depot Lane. 29. That determination would be based on the side streets possibly meeting the warrant for a three-color signal sometime with five (5)years, and at that point, the intersection was put on the listfor a three-color traffic light. 30. The list I referred to contains about 75 locations which require a two (2) to three (3) year lead time to account for design and construction of the signal, removal of all poles and infrastructure as well as time to perform the underground work including utilities. 31. This intersection did not even come close to fulfilling the warrants necessary for the consideration much less the implementation of a left-turn signal. 32. tronically, there was never even a prior request for a left-hand turn signal at County Road 48 and Depot Lane. 33. Relative to the decision to authorize a three-color light, the basis of same was that this was the last remaining flashing traffic signal along the County Road 48 corridor. For that reason, we looked favorably upon this five year projection of the volumes on Depot Lane and used that as a recommendation to convert the flashing signal to a three-color signal. 34. The light was formally approved on February 5, 2014, with the provision that the Town of Southold, which needed to pass on it,also was to take over care and maintenance, which itdid commencing in March of 2016. 35. The light itself was installed in September of 2015, but had been in the pipeline for a period of time before the accident. 36. Itis important to note that traffic engineering is a data-driven field and though we respond to all requests, engineering judgment and expertise must be practiced in black and white and not because of emotion or politics. 37. and in order to quell the furor the we re- Nevertheless, following accident, visited the site post-accident on a Saturday in August of 2015, knowing that the signal itselfwould be installed by September. 38. The idea was that ifthe warrants were met for a left-hand turn phase, a Change Order could have been issued and a modification undertaken. 39. New volume and turn counts were obtained. -4- FILED: SUFFOLK COUNTY CLERK 09/08/2022 12:27 PM INDEX NO. 611214/2015 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 1042 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 09/08/2022 40. However, based on the required analysis, the warrants again were nowhere near being met for a left-hand tum phase signal. 41. Although itwould not have taken much in the way of electronic and computer reconfiguration, a left-hand tum signal could not be justified at this intersection. 42. In other words, without question, itwould have been a significant deviation to recommend the implementation of a left-turn phase at this intersection since the warrants set forth by the MUTCD were not met. 43. Insofar as U-tums are concemed, they have been, and stillare legal at the intersection of County Road 48 and Depot Lane. 44. As with the left-hand tum situation, there was also never a request at any time for a No U-turn sign at this intersection. 45. As a matter of fact, 1 do not believe we have ever received a request for data on U-tuming vehicles at any intersection within the jurisdiction of the SCDPW. 46. As with the left-hand turn situation, there was no history of U-turn accidents at this intersection for a number of years prior to July 18, 2015. 47. Insofar as the line of sight is concerned, SCDPW is guided by the American Association of State Highway Transportation Officials (AASHTO). 48. The infonnation garnered during the traffic studies indicated that there was a recommended 645 foot line of sight for those looking at westbound traffic at this intersection and the lineof sight was measured to be at least 1,000 feet at that juncture. 49. In summary, and in my capacity as Director of Traffic Engineering and Highway Work Permits at the time in question, the volume and crash history warrants at this intersection were not met for a traffic much less a left- light, hand turn light, 50. Nevertheless, the SCDPW decided to be proactive and utilize the five year projection provision in the MUTCD to authorize the three-color light. FILED: SUFFOLK COUNTY CLERK 09/08/2022 12:27 PM INDEX NO. 611214/2015 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 1042 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 09/08/2022 51. Unlike the five year growth factor warrant utilized for the approval of the three-color light, there is no similar provision relative to the installation of a left-hand tum signal. 52. As noted above, itwould have been a significant deviation from appropriate traffic engineering judgment to recommend the implementation of a left-hand tum signal at this intersection based on a lack of requests as well as traffic volume and crash data. 53, The same engineering judgment protocol applies to not recommending the issuance of a No U-tum sign. Once again, no requests and no accidents. 54. Based on the foregoing, which is my personal knowledge of what transpired relative to the SCDPW, itstraffic studies and accurate engineering judgment were applied appropriately to the intersection of County Road 48 and Depot Lane as of July I8, 2015. 55. Accordingly, I respectfully request that this Honorable Court grant Summary Judgment to the County of Suffolk based on the separate grounds ofmunicipal Qualified Immunity and lack of notice regarding the allegations pertaining to the intersection in question. _ - Daniel J. Dre c , Jr. Swom to before me this day of September, 2022. Notary ablic CAROL ANN GAt10-RUSSO Public, State of New York Notary No. 01GA4832721 Quahfied in Suffolk County Commission Expires April30