A Los Angeles County jury entered a verdict in favor of the family who died in a fiery crash with a semi-trailer truck on Thanksgiving 2009. The Asam family was on its way from California to Oregon to visit relatives for the Thanksgiving weekend. Kylie Asam, who was 9 at…
Marbella Smilovitz, 51, brought her car to the defendant McGrath City Honda for repairs to fix a flat tire. It was July 31, 2010. The dealership is located at 6720 W. Grand Avenue, Chicago, Ill. The McGrath employees brought Smilovitz to her car in the service area to show her…
On June 3, 2008, the plaintiff, Richard Girden, who was a right side rear-seat passenger in a Land Rover, was stopped on southbound Route 59 at 119th Street in Will County, Ill. Another vehicle, driven by Fidel Ramirez, was stopped behind the Land Rover. The Girden vehicle had been stopped…
Cynthia Madden was killed by a BNSF train after her car stalled on the railway crossing in May 2007 near Moline, Illinois. The Madden family brought a lawsuit against the railroad claiming negligence, specifically that the warning indicators for the train approach had all occurred fewer than 20 seconds before the…
The amendment to the Illinois Vehicle Code expands the existing ban on e-mailing while driving. The new act goes into effect on Jan. 1, 2014. The law prohibits the use of all electronic communication devices while driving with a few narrow exceptions. Except for hands-free telephone use, GPS navigation, CB…
On Jan. 11, 2010, Vinayak Dravid was driving eastbound on Golf Road in Skokie, Ill., when the defendant Anila Amin pulled out from a parking lot at 3337 W. Golf Road. Amin was attempting to turn left and go westbound, causing the crash with a plaintiff’s car. The impact resulted…
On Jan. 14, 2010, Anthony Rossi was driving eastbound on 95th Street in Oak Lawn, Ill. The corner of his car was hit by a semi-tractor-trailer truck on the same eastbound 95th Street driven by the defendant, Steven Groft, as he was changing lanes. The crash caused Rossi’s car to…
Jennifer Wells, age 27, was a pedestrian crossing at Pulaski Avenue and 52nd Street in Chicago. She was heading westbound at the northern-most stoplight standard of the intersection. She believed it was the location of the crosswalk. It was rush hour at the time of the incident, and traffic was stopped…
On July 31, 2008, a multi-car collision occurred in which the car driven by Gregory Mlot rear-ended the vehicle in front of him driven by Michael Dervin. Wendy Palacios was a passenger in Dervin’s car. It was alleged that the Dervin vehicle then rear-ended the vehicle in front of him,…
The family of a woman who died when her Toyota Camry suddenly accelerated and crashed, despite her efforts to stop it, has sued the Toyota Motor Corp. In opening statement the attorney for the plaintiff’s family asked the jury to return a verdict in excess of $20 million. This case involves the…