Chicago Truck Accident Lawyer Blog

Police have identified the 80-year-old man who was injured in an Illinois tractor-trailer crash on Saturday as Robert W. Schaefer. The Granite City man was at the intersection of Illinois 3 and West Chain of Rocks Road when the large truck struck him. He was pronounced dead at the hospital.

There was no intersection at the area where Schaefer crossed the street. However, according to witnesses, the semi-truck was stopped at a red light when the elderly pedestrian started crossing. The truck then moved into the intersection as the light turned green and struck Schaefer. The trucker said he never saw him. According to Stltoday.com, Police are investigating the cause of the Illinois semi-truck accident but that criminal charges are not expected.

In other Illinois truck accident news, a mother is suing Beelman Trucking Co. and trucker Kevin L. Kuepfer for injuries she and her son sustained during a Lebanon collision. Antwynette Golliday says that the truck operator failed to swerve or stop to avoid crashing into her vehicle on US Highway 50 and was unable to stay in control of his truck. She contends that Kuepfer was operating his truck at a speed faster than what conditions required, did not maintain adequate brakes, and failed to keep a proper lookout.

Golliday, who says that she and her son sustained serious injuries and suffered severe anguish and pain, is seeking over $50,000 of four counts each against the truck operator and Beelman.

Man dies after being hit by truck in Granite City, STL Today, November 19, 2010

Mother, child injured in truck collision , The Record, November 18, 2010

Related Web Resources:
Trucking Accidents: Common Causes & Liability, Nolo

Center for National Truck and Bus Statistics

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The family of East Dubuque resident Tabitha Carroll has been awarded a $6.5 million Illinois semi-truck accident settlement. Carroll, 32, died on Route 47 in Huntley, Illinois on October 31, 2008.

Carroll, her husband Randolph, and son Gabriel, 3, were headed to Goebbert’s Pumpkin Patch that Halloween day when a tractor-trailer rear-ended the pickup truck they were riding. According to a judge, trucker Jeffrey Repec, a Spring Grove man, was speeding at the time. The impact of the truck crash pushed the Carroll family’s car into a stopped IDOT truck.

While Carroll died at the Illinois tractor-trailer crash site, Randolph sustained a number of personal injuries, including facial fractures, spinal injuries, and respiratory failure. Gabriel sustained lacerations, two broken legs, and head injuries.

According to the family’s truck collision lawsuit, not only was Repec driving a motor vehicle while under the influence of drugs, as well as speeding, but also he did not keep a proper lookout. Police had determined that Rebec was high on marijuana when the Illinois tractor-trailer crash happened. The trucker eventually pleaded guilty to aggravated driving under the influence. He is serving 45 months at a correctional facility.

Meantime, the tractor-trailer’s owner, Geils Farms, is accused of violating the law by failing to conduct random drug tests on truckers, neglecting to perform employee background checks and not getting a copy of each truck driver’s driving record. Also, not only was the truck that struck the Carrolls’ vehicle overloaded, but five of its breaks were out of adjustment, the rear left turn signal could not be operated, and a number of the vehicle’s brake pads had grease or oil contaminating them, which prevented safe braking and stopping.

The Illinois truck accident settlement includes $4.7 million for Carroll’s wrongful death, $300,000 for Gabriel’s personal injuries, and $1.5 million for Randolph’s injuries to a minor.

Huntley crash victims are awarded $6.5 million, The Courier-News, October 31, 2010

Halloween Car Crash Results in $6.5 million settlement in wrongful death lawsuit, Lawyers and Settlements, November 4, 2010

Related Web Resources:
Trucking Accidents Overview, Justia

Michigan Center for Truck Safety

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

Chicago Injury Attorney Blog

Continue reading " $6.5 Million Illinois Tractor-Trailer Accident Settlement Goes to Family of Woman Killed on Halloween 2008 " »

Police are reporting the deaths of two bicyclists after they were hit by a fertilizer truck yesterday. The victims of the Illinois truck accident are Luis Duran and Teresa Rojas. The two of them were walking their bikes when the three-wheeled truck struck them from behind.

Getting hit by any type of large vehicle can be tough for the victims—especially pedestrians and pedalcyclists who, unlike vehicle occupants, do not have a motor vehicle to provide some protection during impact. Our Chicago truck accident lawyers represent clients that have been injured or lost loved ones in collisions involving all types of large trucks. This is not the type of injury case that you want to pursue without the help of an experienced Illinois truck crash law firm.

Truck crash injuries can result in serious head injuries, traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, organ damage, burn injuries, and death. As an Illinois truck accident victim, it is important that you explore your legal options as soon as possible.

In other recent truck collision news, 12 people were transported to the hospital on Tuesday after a coal truck struck a school bus on SR 57. The injured included 10 children, the semi-truck driver, and the bus driver.

Just the day before, seven people were treated at a truck accident site and another three were taken to the hospital following a tractor-trailer crash involving several other autos. According to a preliminary investigation, trucker Robert Carl Guinn, 72, swerved into a left hand lane where he struck a 2006 KIA SUV, pushing it over the barrier. The other vehicles then hit debris from the large truck crash and became disabled.

2 bicyclists dead after fertilizer truck accident, Chicago Tribune, November 10, 2010

Accident victims identified Dixon, SaukValley, November 9, 2010

Coal truck sideswipes Washington schools bus; 12 injured, Washington Times-Herald, November 9, 2010

More Details of Tractor Trailer Accident, WCBC, November 8, 2010

Related Web Resource:
Trucking Accidents, Nolo

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Illinois State Police are reporting one fatality in the Will County semi-truck crash that occurred on Route 394 yesterday morning. The victim, 32-year-old Kelle R. Ill, died at the truck accident site.

According to witnesses, the semitrailer failed to stop at a red light before T-boning the car that Ill was driving. The driver of the semi, Glenn A. Friessen, was not injured during the large truck accident. He was, however, cited for disobeying a traffic device and failure to reduce speed to avoid an injury accident.

Illinois T-Bone Accidents
An Illinois T-bone traffic crash involves one car striking another vehicle from the side. Intersections are a common site for T-bone crashes to occur. Often, drivers involved in a T-bone collision will offer conflicting accounts about what happened.

T-bone crashes can result in serious injuries. Usually, it is the passenger occupant sitting on the side of the vehicle that was struck that is at highest risk of getting hurt. Hopefully, the vehicle that is hit during a broadside crash will have side-impact airbags. That said, these airbags can only provide a certain degree of protection for a passenger.

Common T-bone accident injuries include traumatic brain injuries, neck injuries, joint injuries, broken bones, spinal cord injuries, bone injuries, lacerations, head trauma, and internal injuries. Getting struck in a T-bone crash by a large truck can prove fatal.

St. John woman killed in Ill. 394 crash, NWI.com, November 4, 2010

Woman killed when semi T-bones her car near Crete, Sun-Times, November 3, 2010

Related Web Resources:
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

The Trucker.com

Continue reading " Woman Killed in Will County, Illinois Semi-Truck Crash " »