Woman run over by Beach Patrol truck speaks out on 'Today' show - Daytona Beach News-Journal
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Erin Joynt said she doesn't remember a Beach Patrol truck running over her head but woke up to hear a Good Samaritan telling her to lie still.
"You go through life and don't think that that day is going to be your last," Joynt said during an interview this morning on NBC's "Today" show. "That day could have been that day."
Joynt said the Volusia County Beach Patrol officer's truck ran over the right side of her head and down her back on July 31.
"I am not feeling a whole lot on that side of my face," Joynt said.
Her daughter, Hannah, said she stopped her younger brother from seeing the accident because she didn't want him to go through the pain she was going through seeing her mother run over by the vehicle.
Asked what she would like see happen to the driver, Erin Joynt said: "I'd like to go with the fact that mistakes happen but we should be responsible for our actions and would like to see some outcome for this."
The entire family was filmed at their home, then appeared live on the morning show with one of their correspondents reporting live this morning from the beach.
Last month, Joynt's attorney, John Phillips, sent a notice to Volusia County by certified mail that she intends to sue. He appeared with her today on the nationally televised show.
Joynt, a stay-at-home-mom, sufered fractures to her head, a collapsed lung and broken ribs. "I'm pretty limited, " she said during a telephone interview earlier.
"I can't bend over. Movement is slow and stiff. I'm still sleeping in an incline position. I can't lay flat."
Joynt was hit on the sand in Daytona Beach Shores by a county Ford F-150 pickup. Thomas Moderie, a 21-year-old part-time lifeguard, was trying to make a U-turn when he struck her head. Moderie has been cited for careless driving, said Florida Highway Patrol Sgt. Kim Montes.
Joynt returned home to Kansas after being treated for skull fractures and internal injuries.
"I am not a vengeful person," she said in her written statement, emphasizing that her life has been forever changed. "I need to be able to show my daughter that the law is good," Joynt continued.
Her daughter and son Thomas, 5, were walking from the water when they saw the commotion, which her attorney said included hearing people "scream and react in horror."
No charges have been filed in the crash, which remains under investigation by the Florida Highway Patrol.
Joynt is seeking a claim for negligence, gross negligence and battery. "Erin Joynt seeks compensation for past, present and future pain and suffering," a copy of the intent letter says.
Joynt said she was fortunate to not need surgery, although a tube was inserted in her side to treat internal injuries.
In addition to payment for physical injuries, Joynt is seeking damages for severe psychological trauma. Joynt had only been on the beach for two hours when she was hit.
Looking back at pictures from the scene, she noticed a tire of the truck that hit her was parked on top of her son's life jacket. "I had just taken that off of him," she said. "I'm very thankful my kids were playing with my husband, and it was just me."
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