By Google added walking directions to their Maps application a while ago, but it’s rare that we hear about anybody using it. The story Gizmodo reported on earlier this past weekend, though, wasn’t as pleasant as some of the success stories that come out of driving directions users who don’t seem to have a good grasp on navigating.
Lauren Rosenburg was the unlucky user that followed Google’s directions turn-for-turn and ended up getting hit by a car. Maps told Lauren to walk onto a busy freeway to get to where she needed to go. The end result? A lawsuit delivered straight to the Googleplex asking them to pony up $100,000.
Whether or not you agree that she has cause to sue, Google reminds users of their navigation and direction features – which are still in beta – to use caution due to missing sidewalks and pedestrian pathways. I just can’t help but question why you would walk onto a busy highway just because Google Maps tells you it’s the best way to go. That’s almost as bad as jumping off of a bridge because you saw someone else do it.
Anyway, you should use caution when using GPS navigation of any kind – whether it be from Google, Garmin, TomTom, etc. – and it’ll go a long way in making sure you don’t walk blindly into 70 miles-per-hour of oncoming traffic.
[note]: Lauren was using Google Maps on her Blackberry, but the same caution applies no matter which platform you’re using Google maps on, including Android.
The disclaimer you need to accept pretty much covers Google from idiots as in this example.
This is where society is going to. People can’t think for themselves as Government does all thinking for them.
Just goes to prove that there are people in the world that are so stupid they shouldn’t be allowed to leave their own property.
I say we give her the stupid test, If the area dose not look safe don’t walk there!!! Why should others pay for your stupidity. She’s just looking for easy money… she won’t win.
“Lauren Rosenburg was the stupid user…”
There. Fixed that for you.
Yeah, so she’s a dumba** and paid the price. She should sue herself for being so dumb.
This isn’t a case of stupidity, this is a case trying someone trying to make money. Plain and simple.
how dumb you got to be to walk into a highway>>>>????
why don’t she sue her mother and father for giving her such poor DNA. what a RETARD…
Unfortunately this woman is still alive which means there is the possibility that she will pro-create if she hasn’t already and bring another waste of skin and synapses into this world. She is a perfect example of Darwinism at its’ best and I am hoping that she is promptly culled from the gene pool the next time she follows Google Maps while walking to the store and falls off of a 600ft. ledge. No one and I do truly mean NO one this stupid should be allowed to have pets, let alone children.
I don’t see Google as having any more of a case than McDonald’s did with their hot coffee, and they lost. Telling people to use their own judgement is no good if they if they don’t have good judgement. Maybe they need to add something like “Be sure to travel with someone who has common sense”
This should be added to the Darwin awards.
unbelievable. i wonder if she walked through any rivers or climbed any tall walls before walking across the freeway.
I know there are idiots like this out in the world. Sad this happened, but I can’t help to think that maybe this lady needs a full psych evaluation instead. No one in their right mind would/should walk in to a busy highway. This lady is clearly nuts. Google does have their end covered with appropriate warnings in their maps app. Any judge that allows this case to move forward deserves to be removed from office period. Case closed.
As Ceger mentioned, Google’s disclaimer protects them from mindless idiots who would walk into traffic, off a cliff, etc. It is ashame this woman was hurt, however, if you are the type of person who will walk into traffic, or turn off the road into the trees, or into the ocean because your GPS system told you to, travelling, or any type of mobility is definitely not for you. There is also the possibility that she did it on purpose for a lawsuit. (For those of you about to post something along the lines of “no one would ever do that just for money”. Yes, they will and DO. Even with large vehicles like tractor-trailers. I hope she recovers and LEARNS. I also hope the judge and jury award her nothing under penalty of death for rewarding the stupid.
I don’t know why people are calling her stupid. She’s probably an unemployed lady with a blackberry who found a way to sue Google to get some local news coverage for a couple of days and get a half chance to make some quick bucks.
People can do anything to get attention.
Unfortunately the jury will be populated with people who are truly her “peers” since the lawyers love to fill them with people who can be easily manipulated. Hence the literally insane verdicts that get handed down in many cases.
(Not that juries are bad, it’s just that the selection system is seemingly broken and they make decisions that seem to be the opposite of common sense, especially in civil liability cases with huge sums of money involved).
@Bob Why? Simple because regardless as to whether or not she did it purposely for media coverage/lawsuit or is really just that plain freakin’ stupid the end result is that she is stupid. Not to mention still breathing which is unfortunate. Anyone this completely clueless should be cared for by professionals in a facility and not be allowed to wander about alone. She should also never be allowed to have offspring because that would just further taint and dilute the gene pool.
SHE WALKED ONTO A BUSY FREEWAY AND GOT HIT BY A CAR.
So basically she risked her life for the chance to sue Google?
We had an unusually hard Winter here in Ireland this year and rescue crews were frequently called out to drivers who had gotten stuck in deep snow drifts up in the hills. When asked why they had continued driving up a given pass when the conditions were very obviously unsafe, many of those rescued said that they were merely following the directions on their sat navs or smartphones, which they assumed were factoring in the current weather conditions!
There was a walking path beside the road she walked on! To even get on the road she would have had to pass it.
This “story” was also covered on /. for those interested. http://news.slashdot.org/story/10/05/31/1742203/Pedestrian-Follows-Google-Map-Gets-Run-Over-Sues
I feel the same as she does…
http://s979.photobucket.com/albums/ae276/bcaprara1/?action=view¤t=GoogleMaps-1.jpg
Was she mentally handicapped or blind? How many signs did she pass that prohibited pedestrians from crossing the highway?
“Your honor, the phone made me J-Walk in front of that car.”
This is just as classic as when Michael Scott drove his company supplied PT Cruiser into a lake on “The Office” because “the technology told him to”. The sad reality is, that’s a TV show. I weep for the future.
As bugs bunny would say: “What a Moroon!”
I’ve had TomTom “suggest” that I take a right turn in the middle of an overpass. I laughed and figured that I’d get a funny story out of it. Can’t believe that people still think that machines are infallible.
I was using my Droid for navigation yesterday. It got me to my destination just fine, but on the way back it asked me to do an illegal left turn.
I used my (un?)common sense, went past it, turned around – legally – and made the turn coming the other way. But then, I generally *enjoy* using my brain… I’ve learned that not everyone’s like that.
Yet another case where common sense was thrown out (if she ever had any) to blindly follow the directions. How many times to we have to hear about someone blindly following what is essentional an electronic navigating device into a ditch or river because it told them to. That is no excuse. Take some responsibility. Didn’t your parents teach you how to cross a street? Let alone walk in traffic. Face it lady you should not be allowed outside. Unless accompanied by some WAY smarter then you. Or get a seeing eye dog. Its smart enough to know not to walk in traffic.
When is it okay not to have personal responsibility any longer in this world. I mean come one we teach our children at a very young age to look both ways before crossing the street. Android phones are great but they can’t tell you when a car is approaching you. Maybe 2.3 will have that built into the system now. Maybe if her phone told her to jump off a bridge she would have drown.
I heard Steven Jobs messed with her phone through wifi. Police found a floating apple logo on her android device lol
It is ludicrous that people even need to put disclaimers against this crap.
People should never be able to be put to blame for someone else failure to look after themselves.
Let us go back to the age old morale we tell children.
“If I told you to walk off a cliff, would you do that?”
the driver of the car should be sued for not backing over her after he/she hit the idiot. thanks to him/her linda is still alive and may reproduce.
I think she should sue the store she bought her smartphone from because she is not smart enough to use one.
Seriously though, do you have any idea how many time Google navigation has told me to turn on a one way street?
.
It’s not that reliable.
.
If this lady wins, I’m going to start turning no matter what my common sense tells me.
WOW!! i would love to meet her and slap some sense right across her face! Thats the best Scheme she could come up with to get money. she should get her A*@ BEAT!!!! I would love nothing more than to be part of that jury or better yet the judge!
Wow, a lot of you are wishing her dead. Really? Im guessing not one of you have ever seen a body that has been hit by a car and splattered all over a street. Im sure if you were driving a car you would have hit her and if she survived backed over her right? To teach her a lesson? Should we use common sense in life yes do all people have common sense NO look in the mirror at and think of a stupid thing you have done at one time or another. Should you die for that, maybe?
Sad. Another reason women shouldnt drive.
;)
Hey, android is young yet, Google will make android better , just give them time……
The sad thing is that this case may get settled out of court due to the cost of litigation would be more expensive than the settlement. She should not receive a red cent. Where is the personal responsibility these days. I am in law enforcement and this now makes me think twice about giving anyone directions due to being sued if they have a crash on the roadway I directed them to. I feel sorry for her bathtub company in case she were to fall while showering or even burnt by hot water in the tub. Wait I could be sued by my adult children due to the fact that I forgot to tell them something that would keep them from harm. WHERE DOES THIS CRAP STOP!!! Our largest fear in law enforcement today is not being shot but being sued. What will the public do when no one wants to be in law enforcement for that reason or a company is afraid to provide a service that is of value?
Good thing she wasn’t looking for directions from Australia to San Francisco (look it up).
Welcome to the US where people can’t take resposibility for themselves. It’s easier to sue someone else. If I was the judge I would fine that lady for such a stupid reason to sue someone.
The justice system is total ballz.
Gotta use common sense when using navigation plain and simple. These little navigation units are handy to have, but not perfect at all.
This lady is gonna lose badly in court, mark my words.
@cJessie1222: You’ve driven your car into a lake because your gps said to, didn’t you.
@cJessie1222, Face it. You’re dealing with people who think the world is a video game and “kill” doesn’t mean anything. Lecturing them is pointless: they lack the empathy for the lecture to be effective. As for the woman who got hit, that’s a case of someone who can’t take responsibility for her own stupidity. Sad that she was hurt, but really. As many others have said, just because your GPS tells you to do something doesn’t mean you abdicate all common sense and follow it blindly.
Oh right its GOOGLE’S fault that she crossed a CLEARLY busy highway right. People are fucking retarded. She was looking for a quick buck.
what a dumb b1tch.
Hearing all of the statements thus far I hereby nominate Ms. Rosenburg for the 2010 Darwin Award.
I really hope that she has reproduced yet.
wow this lady is stupid. hmm, if i see cars speeding across the road i think i should try to get to the other side.
why the hell is she bypassing her common sense and blindly following a GPS? Plus didn’t her parents teach her to look both ways and make sure the road is clear before walking across the street?
So she trusted Google Maps over her own eyes?
Hey, going_home, perhaps you didn’t read the article, but she was WALKING… Idiots come in both genders, you know.
Were her parents brother and sister!? What r-tard walks into a busy highway? ):/
I bet she’d sue them if she fell on a stick as well!
@Darkseider:
LMAOOO!!!!!!! No doubt. This woman needs some serious help.
——————
Original comment:
“Unfortunately this woman is still alive which means there is the possibility that she will pro-create if she hasn’t already and bring another waste of skin and synapses into this world. She is a perfect example of Darwinism at its’ best and I am hoping that she is promptly culled from the gene pool the next time she follows Google Maps while walking to the store and falls off of a 600ft. ledge. No one and I do truly mean NO one this stupid should be allowed to have pets, let alone children.”
Why are lawyers allowed to bring such blatantly ridiculous suits with (AFAIK) absolutely ZERO repercussions?
if google maps had of told her to jump off a cliff would she have done it!!! like come on honestly!!!!
She should of been old enough to realize that you shouldn’t walk onto a highway, and now Google has to take the blame. My 5 year old nephew would know better.
The quickest way to get from the 52nd floor to the 1st floor is out the window. Until now I would think there would be someone stupid enough to do it, but I guess you can sue for your own stupidity now-a-days.
You would think she would use some common sense…obviously just trying to make a quick buck and possibly gain some publicity. She should win the Darwin award – DUH!!!
But Google told me to walk onto the busy, super-dangerous highway!!
God Bless America.
After reading countless stories from the Stella Awards, I know that a complete lack of common sense is never an air-tight defense. Short of the directions saying, “Look left, then right, then left again you stupid bitch,” this will go to court.
The “beta” excuse is really really old. I wonder if Google’s team of lawyers came up with that. I am not a lawyer, but if it’s in production, it’s production.
What if car companies started using this excuse? “Sorry about the brakes not working and the accelerator sticking, but those are in beta still.” or “Yeah, the P&W engine failed on our Boeing, and the plane crashed, but it’s not a problem, since they were using one of our newer, beta engines.”
One Google Map to another:
My Google Map user is soooo stupid….
How stupid is she?
She’s so stupid that she walked onto a BUSY highway because that was the most direct route.
What happened?
Well she got hit crossing the road and now she is suing for big money!
Hhhhhmmm….she doesn’t sound so stupid to me…..!!!!