The Charleston-North Charleston metro area ranks 12th in the nation for pedestrian deaths, according to Smart Growth America's Dangerous by Design 2026 report. The study counted 154 pedestrian deaths in the region from 2020 through 2024, a rate of 3.69 per 100,000 residents, as the Charleston City Paper reported.
The ranking matters beyond the statistics because it measures how often people walking are killed on the region's roads, and South Carolina fared poorly as a state as well, ranking fourth nationally. Statewide, 123 pedestrians had been killed this year as of Oct. 6, compared with 129 at the same point in 2025, according to the South Carolina Department of Public Safety. Local officials are responding: Charleston is using a federal grant to study high-priority intersections from Johns Island to the upper peninsula, ABC News 4 reported.
For residents, the report lands alongside practical legal questions that arise after a crash. Woron and Dhillon, LLC is encouraging residents to understand their rights after a crash and to meet with a pedestrian accident lawyer in Charleston, SC if they've been injured to discuss what compensation may be available.
Under S.C. Code § 56-5-3230, every driver must exercise due care to avoid hitting a pedestrian, with extra precaution around children. A pedestrian crossing outside a crosswalk must yield to vehicles, though that rule does not erase the driver's duty of care. When a driver leaves the scene of a hit-and-run, the pedestrian's own auto policy may provide uninsured motorist coverage. Most injury claims must be filed within three years under S.C. Code § 15-3-530.
Insurers frequently argue that a pedestrian was outside a crosswalk, distracted, or hard to see. Under South Carolina's modified comparative negligence rule, a pedestrian can recover if their share of fault does not exceed the combined fault of the defendants, and any award is reduced by that share. When road design contributes to a crash, a government agency may also share responsibility under the Tort Claims Act.
"Regional rankings describe the scale of the problem," said Brett Woron, an attorney with Woron and Dhillon, LLC. "After a crash, the questions are specific to that driver and that crossing. We start with the driver's speed, attention, and line of sight, then look at whether the crossing itself played a role."
The firm handles pedestrian claims in Charleston along with motorcycle accident, catastrophic injury, and other personal injury matters, and attorneys can meet clients at home or in the hospital.
