Brent & Fiol Brings Claims Against Founder Of The Nextdoor.com Web Site For Hit And Run Driving
On Sunday, August 4, 2013, Brent & Fiol client Patrice Motley was driving home to San Francisco on Highway 101 in Brisbane, California. She was in a compact car and had with her one passenger, along with her Bichon Frise dog. The freeway at that location had four northbound lanes; they were in the number 3 lane, next to the slow lane, when a large black SUV began moving into her lane from the left. She sounded her horn, but when the SUV came within one foot of her car, she swerved to the right to avoid a collision. This caused her car to skid and spin across the freeway, until it crashed into the concrete barrier in the center median. Her left arm was crushed and required extensive surgical repair.
The driver of the SUV was Nirav Tolia, founder and CEO of Nextdoor.com, a web site that professed to promote community and neighborhood cooperation. Tolia was alerted to the presence of Ms. Motley’s car by his wife, who was in the front passenger seat, and he swerved back into the number 2 lane and slowed as Ms. Motley tried to regain control of her car in front of him. While Tolia’s wife admitted seeing the small car crash into the concrete barrier, Tolia himself claimed to have seen the loss of control but not the impact. Undoubtedly, his wife told him about the crash.
Despite knowing his illegal driving maneuver had caused another driver to lose control and crash, Tolia did not stop or even report the accident to police, much less his involvement. However, a good samaritan who watched the accident unfold followed Tolia’s vehicle and provided its license plate number to police. He was tracked down at his home and admitted involvement, claiming he did not stop because he was “shaken” and did not know what to do.
After investigation, Brent & Fiol partner Joseph Brent brought an action in San Francisco Superior Court against Tolia alleging both motor vehicle negligence and intentional infliction of emotional distress arising out of his decision to leave the scene of the accident.
Tolia’s leaving the scene was ironic to say the least, considering the professed values of the web site he founded, and this was not lost on the press, which covered the matter extensively. As a result of pressure brought when Brent Fiol’s civil lawsuit was reported in the press, Tolia was charged by San Mateo prosecutors with felony hit and run driving, and later pled no contest to reduced misdemeanor charges. The civil suit was resolved without a trial.
Here are a sampling of the many press reports relating to the civil and criminal claims against Tolia.
Law.com
Keker & Van Nest to Defend Tech CEO Against Hit-and-Run Claims
Forbes
Nextdoor Hit-and-Run: Yet Another Tech CEO Faces Criminal Charges
Business Insider
CEO Of $600 Million Startup Nextdoor Allegedly Injured A Woman In A Car Crash And Drove Away
CNBC
LAWSUITS San Francisco tech CEO charged with hit-and-run
SF Gate
Police-friendly tech CEO charged with hit-and-run
SF Gate
Nextdoor CEO convicted of misdemeanor hit-run
Reuters
Nextdoor CEO pleads no contest to hit and run charge
Mercury News
Nextdoor CEO charged with felony hit-and-run