By STEPHEN SMITH
stephen@du2.byu.edu
A BYU student was struck by a car Wednesday night as he was crossing a street south of the BYU campus.
Michael Martinez, 18, a freshman from Wilbraham, Mass., was hit by a southbound vehicle on 200 East between the 800 North and 700 North intersections at approximately 7 p.m., said Sgt. Gary Hodson, with the Provo Police.
Martinez neglected to use a crosswalk and crossed the street in the middle of the block, Hodson said.
Martinez was transported to the Utah Valley Regional Medical Center immediately following the accident and was listed in stable condition, according to the UVRMC emergency center.
Aaron Bennet, 18, a Provo resident, the driver of the vehicle, sustained no injuries.
Although no citations were issued at the scene of the accident, Hodson said because Martinez crossed in the middle of the block, Bennet would most likely not be held responsible for the accident.
'Pedestrians ought to use the crosswalks and not cross in the middle of the block. That's the bottom line,' said Hodson.
Erin Yamashita, 19, a sophomore from Newark, Calif., a pre-nursing major witnessed the accident.
'I heard a loud screech. I turned and saw him (Martinez) hit the hood, flip over and land on the street,' Yamashita said.
Yamashita added that the driver, Bennet, was extremely upset and apologized to Martinez for hitting him, while at the same time, Martinez took the blame and told Bennet that it was 'all right.'
Mark Martinez, 21, Michael's brother and a sophomore majoring in English, was at the hospital Wednesday night with his brother.
'He is doing fine. He is banged up, but he looks pretty good,' Mark said.