One spring evening in 1977, on his way to his San Francisco studio, a dark and terrifying moment nearly cost the artist his life. Mulleian is struck by a car on Fifth and Mission Street leaving the artist with two broken legs, bones that tear through his flesh, nearly causing amputation of his right leg, and a broken left arm, all of which land him at the emergency department of San Francisco General Hospital. Here, Mulleian spent six weeks in traction under intensive care after undergoing three major surgeries. The doctors speculated that the artist might never walk again. This near fatal accident immediately hit the west cost newspapers, most notably Herb Caen's column of the San Francisco Chronicle, leaving many stunned by the news.