Algiers Man Killed By Passing Van Driver Lost Control Trying To Avoid Animal
Submitted by N.O.V.A. July 2005
Times Picayune 	10-28-1998


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A 70-year-old Algiers man, walking to his truck after attending a funeral, died
Tuesday morning after he was struck by a van whose driver was trying to avoid
hitting an animal in the road, authorities said.

Ralph Patterson was about to get into his pickup truck parked in the 2800 block of
Sullen Place in Algiers when he was struck by a van driven by Glynn Hoffman, 51,
of Chalmette, New Orleans Police Department spokeswoman Sgt. Erin Reilly said.

Hoffman was southbound on Sullen Place shortly after 9 a.m. when an animal ran out
from underneath a parked car, Reilly said. He swerved to miss it, lost control of
his vehicle, crossed to the opposite side of the roadand hit Patterson, she said.

Patterson was pinned between his truck and Hoffman's 1986 Chevrolet van, Reilly
said. Patterson was taken to Charity Hospital, where he was pronounced dead a
short time later, Reilly said.

A passenger in Patterson's truck, a 61-year-old woman, also was taken to the
hospital as a precaution, Reilly said. She was treated and released.

Reilly said Hoffman described the animal as tan or beige, but he couldn't tell
whether it was a dog or cat. He wasn't injured and was not cited; however, police
will consult the district attorney regarding possible charges, Reilly said.