Family of Baseball Coach Files Wrongful Death Lawsuit After Collision with Tractor-Trailer
An Illinois trucking company is being sued by the estate and family of a beloved baseball coach who lost his life in a 3-vehicle accident. One person was killed and two others were injured in an accident involving a tractor-trailer, a pickup truck, and a car. The decedent was driving his pickup truck when the accident occurred. The 29-year-old’s family is now suing the Illinois company for which the driver of the tractor-trailer worked.
The accident occurred in South Carolina. According to reports, a 2011 Buick sedan, a 2006 Ford pickup, and a 2024 Freightliner tractor-trailer were all going east on I-20, according to officials. Traffic had stalled ahead of the vehicles and the car and the pickup truck had both stopped. At this point, the tractor-trailer crashed into the rear of the pickup. The pickup then hit the back of the car, causing both of the vehicles to run off the right side of the road. The pickup overturned. The baseball coach died at the scene, while both the car driver and their passenger were taken to a nearby hospital.
Elements of negligence
This is among the most common types of accidents you’ll see in cases involving large semi-trucks, tractor-trailers, and other large vehicles. Such vehicles cannot stop on a dime like smaller commuter vehicles. Instead, they roll to a stop. Often, it happens that when traffic slows on an interstate, the truck is traveling at great speed and needs to slow down quickly. If the driver isn’t paying attention to the road and stops too late, then he runs the risk of rear-ending vehicles in front of him. In such cases, the driver is at fault for the accident.
According to the lawsuit, the pickup truck driven by the decedent was legally stopped when it was rear-ended by the tractor-trailer. The lawsuit claims that the trucking company, through its driver, was negligent for the crash. The family is seeking monetary damages for pain, suffering, medical expenses, and other losses. The lawsuit reads, “[The decedent] suffered and met an untimely death and his beneficiaries suffered and have endured grief, sorrow, shock, mental and emotional anguish, and anxiety and the loss of decedent’s support, love, and companionship.
Wrongful death lawsuits and truck accidents
Wrongful death lawsuits are civil claims filed by personal injury lawyers on behalf of grieving family members. Such lawsuits allege that a death caused by the defendant is the responsibility of the defendant due to negligence. In other words, the defendant is responsible for the death because they were negligent. In this case, the trucking company’s driver rear-ended a vehicle in stopped traffic. The driver was obviously negligent for the accident. So his company is responsible for paying the wrongful death claim filed by the family. The only question is: How much?
Talk to a Springfield, IL Truck Accident Lawyer
Victims of truck accidents and their family members are entitled to compensation. If you’ve been injured or lost a loved one because of the negligence of a truck driver, call the Champaign personal injury lawyers at Patel Law, PC today to schedule a consultation, and learn more about how we can help.
Source:
heraldonline.com/news/local/article293936694.html
