Pedestrian passes away from July accident

A 68-year-old Princeton man has died of his injuries after he was struck by a pickup truck as he crossed Washington Road at Prospect Avenue, according to the Princeton Police Department.

Michael Reiss, who is a physician, was crossing Washington Road at 10:30 a.m. on July 30 and was midway through the crosswalk when he was struck by a Ford F350 pickup truck driven by Antonio Pirone, 42, of Princeton.

The traffic light had turned green and Pirone was making a left turn onto Washington Road from Prospect Avenue when the accident occurred, police said. Reiss was in the crosswalk, headed toward Prospect Avenue.

Pirone did not see Reiss, and the driver’s side front bumper of the pickup truck struck Reiss, causing him to fall. He was knocked to the ground and as he rolled, Reiss struck the back of his head on the pavement, police said.

Reiss was taken to Capital Health Regional Medical Center in Trenton, and then transferred to Penn Presbyterian Medical Center in Philadelphia. Reiss died of his injuries Aug. 1, said police, who were notified of his death on Aug. 2.

Pirone was issued a summons for failure to yield to a pedestrian in a crosswalk. The incident remains under investigation.

Reiss was a physician and scientist who had worked extensively in breast cancer, according to his obituary. He was working on a vaccine to prevent breast cancer. He dedicated his career to his patients and to basic science research to defeat cancer, the obituary said.

The last pedestrian fatality occurred in 2017, when a 62-year-old woman was killed when she was struck by a cement truck as she was crossing Washington Road at Nassau Street. She was walking in the crosswalk when the accident occurred.