Officer Has Message For Motorists After Being Almost Killed Along Route 13

A routine traffic stop nearly killed Falls Township police Lt. Nelson Whitney earlier this week.

The 31-year lawman – a husband, father to seven, and grandfather to six – was heading to work Tuesday morning when he pitched in to assist officers John Caesar and Bruce Rhodunda who were conducting a morning traffic detail along Route 13.

Whitney said he pulled over a Volvo driver who didn’t fully halt at the stop sign coming onto Route 13 from Route 1. He got out of his police vehicle on Route 13 south just before the Tyburn Road exit to get the driver’s information and returned to his new SUV that was black, had its red and blue emergency lights activated, and had low-profile police markings. Shortly after going into the vehicle, an impact as the rear of his vehicle was slammed by an older minivan.

The minivan, which ended up totaled, tore the metal off the back on the police SUV, destroyed the tire, and mangled the side. Pieces of debris from both vehicles ended up on Route 13.

Whitney and the minivan driver both avoided serious injuries.

In the full dashcam video, the fast-moving minivan is seen not activating its brakes until several yards after the crash. The driver of the Volvo pulled over by Whitney appeared shaken as she got out of her vehicle. The longtime officer remained calm and advised her that he is fine and she needed to get back into her vehicle for safety.

Whitney sent a message to county dispatchers about the crash and township and Morrisville Borough officers responded to the scene.

Shortly after his vehicle was struck, Whitney checked on the status on the minivan driver who hit him. He asked if the man was okay and then realized he gave the man a ticket for ignoring a stop sign in July.

Looking at the jarring video from inside his office on Friday morning, Whitney said he’s lucky to have avoided injury.

“If I had been outside the car at the time, I would have been dead,” he said.

“Imagine if that had been a motorist who had car trouble and had stopped?” he rhetorically asked.

When he thinks about the “textbook traffic stop,” Whitney said he followed the protocol and advice he often passes along to new officers.

There was no fog or rain to obstruct the minivan driver’s view and Whitney stopped on a straightaway about 40 yards past a sign advising drivers to move over if they see stopped emergency vehicles.

In Pennsylvania, the “Steer Clear” law requires drivers to move over a lane if possible or slow down as they pass emergency response vehicles if they cannot safely move over a lane. Violations of the law can cost drivers $250 for their first offense and even lead to a license suspension after numerous offenses. According to PennDOT, the statute considers emergency responders law enforcement, tow truck operators, PennDOT vehicles involved in emergency assistance, and other emergency personnel.

Falls Township has worked in recent years to crack down on stop sign violations and dangerous driving, focusing on the high-crash Route 1 and Route 13 corridors.

Citing statistics, the department reported 415 crashes and nearly 3,000 citations issued on Route 13 since 2014, Whitney said.

He added that drivers need to obey stop signs, the steel clear law, and follow the posted speed limit.