Articles Posted in Auto Accidents

by

Benjamin Faught rear-ended Luis Gavino’s car on southbound Interstate 94 in Deerfield, Ill., in the early morning hours of Oct. 3, 2009.  The impact caused the plaintiff’s car to spin several times and crash into a cement median strip.

Gavino, 57, sustained a posterior tibialis tendon tear, located on the inner side of the ankle and aggravation of pre-existing arthritis in his left ankle. This required surgery to the tendon and an ankle fusion. Gavino also had a neck, shoulder and back soft tissue injury.

The defendant, 22-year-old Benjamin Faught, admitted to consuming seven vodka drinks prior to the crash. He pleaded guilty to a charge of DUI. The defendant admitted liability, but evidence of alcohol intoxication was permitted pursuant to the plaintiff’s agreement to withdraw a punitive damage claim as part of the high/low agreement.

Continue reading

by

The Seventh Circuit United States Court of Appeals has affirmed a decision by the district court judge regarding the burden of proof in a Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) case.

Ronald Williams was a substitute U.S. Postal Service letter carrier who had parallel parked his truck to visit a friend.  The plaintiffs in this case, David Furry and Diane Nye, were driving by that home when their vehicle collided with the parked U.S. Postal Service truck, which was driven by Williams.

Furry and Nye testified that they did not see the postal truck before the impact. Williams, realizing that regardless of the outcome, he would be fired for the use of his truck to visit a friend, offered Furry $500 not to report the incident.  

Continue reading

by

An Illinois truck accident case was reviewed by the Illinois Appellate Court to determine whether or not the trial court had erred in its delivery of jury instructions and whether the jury had awarded too much damages. However, after reviewing the case facts, the appellate court upheld the trial court proceedings and eventual verdict in Andrzej Chraca v. Steven Miles, 2011 Ill.App. (1st) 100537-U.

The Chraca lawsuit involved a 2004 car crash between Andrzej Chraca and Steven Miles. Chraca was driving an SUV at the time, while Miles was driving an Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) truck. Both Chraca and Miles suffered degrees of paralysis following the Schaumburg truck accident and both drivers filed personal injury lawsuits against each other.

The two cases were consolidated into one personal injury lawsuit by the Circuit Court of Cook County. At the end of the trial, the court ruled in favor of Chraca and against Miles. Chraca was awarded $23.8 million in damages, which was broken down as follows:

-$500,000 for disfigurement;
-$593,335 for past medical expenses;
-$3.5 million for future medical expenses;
-$2.5 million for past and future pain and suffering; and
-$18 million for past and future loss of a normal life.

And while both lawsuits were consolidated for the purposes of the Cook County personal injury trial, the appeal deals only with the lawsuit filed by Chraca.

Continue reading

by

The lawsuit brought by Patricia Emrickson against Fernando Morfin was dismissed with prejudice because Ms. Emrickson’s attorney relied on an online search service that had inaccurate information about the current address for the defendant, Mr. Morfin. Under Illinois Supreme Court Rule 103(b), a suing plaintiff has a duty to use reasonable diligence in serving a defendant with the complaint.

In this case, the lawsuit was filed by Ms. Emrickson just a short time before the two-year statute of limitations had run out. Although the lawsuit was filed in a timely fashion, Mr. Morfin was not served immediately with the complaint, which alleged that Ms. Emrickson was injured in a car accident. It took 13 months before Mr. Morfin was finally served with a summons.

According to the Illinois Appellate Court, Ms. Emrickson chose not to use reasonable diligence in having Mr. Morfin served before the statute of limitations expired, opening the way for Mr. Morfin to dismiss the case with prejudice under Rule 103(b).

Continue reading

by

In this case the parties fought over the insurance policies arising out of the wrongful death of Daniel Zacha, an employee of S&S Service Co. Mr. Zacha was driving a tractor-trailer owned by Coca-Cola Enterprises back to the S&S garage for repairs; in the process, he caused a head-on crash with the driver of a minivan, which resulted in that driver’s death.

Under the Illinois Vehicle Code, insurance companies are generally required to extend protection under liability policies to persons who are driving insured vehicles with express or implied permission of the owners.

The Illinois Supreme Court explained the statutory requirement of the Illinois Vehicle Code naming it “omnibus coverage,” which means “primary liability is generally placed on the insurer of the owner of an automobile rather than on the insurer of the operator” – unless a statutory exception applies.

Continue reading

by

A recent Illinois Appellate Court decision provided additional clarification regarding the admissibility of photographic evidence. At issue was whether or not a judge had correctly allowed photographs taken at the scene of an accident to be admitted into evidence during a Cook County personal injury trial. The appellate court ruled that judge had and upheld the jury verdict in Patricia Williamson v. Luis Morales, 2012 IL App. (1st) 110324-U.

Williamson involved a 2006 car accident in which the defendant Luis Morales rear-ended the plaintiff Patricia Williamson’s vehicle. And while Morales admitted to having caused the accident, there was some debate as to the extent of Williamson’s injuries. Williamson refused treatment by paramedics at the accident scene, but then did head to the Christ Medical Center Emergency Room just one hour later. And even though her x-rays did not show any fractures, she continued to experience pain and treatment with a chiropractor for four to five months following the accident.

When Williamson brought her personal injury claim against Morales he denied that the car accident was responsible for the extent of Williamson’s injuries and her lost time from work. And when Williamson’s attorney attempted to produce photographs from the accident scene as a way to demonstrate the severity and nature of the car accident, Morales’s attorney objected on the basis that they were not relevant and could not be introduced unless in conjunction with expert testimony. The court agreed and stipulated that the photographs could not be introduced unless the defendant first opened the door to their submission.

Continue reading

by

In rear-end accidents, juries tend to find in favor of the front car that was rear-ended. However in the personal injury lawsuit of Evange Bozinis v. Bree MacArthur, 10 AR-708 (Lake County), the jury found in favor of the second car that rear-ended the front car.

The car accident in question occurred in August 2005 at the intersection of Route 173 and Grimm Road in Antioch, Illinois. Evange Bozinis had been stopped at the intersection and had just begun to drive again when he was rear-ended by Bree MacArthur. The force of the impact caused Bozinis’s vehicle to be pushed forward eight feet. The 66 year-old Bozinis sustained neck, back, shoulder and abdomen injuries as a result of the crash.

Bozinis filed a personal injury lawsuit against MacArthur in which he accused her of causing the rear-end accident. Bozinis claimed that the car accident resulted in over $8,000 in medical bills. However, MacArthur contested the extent of Bozinis’s injuries. She pointed to the fact that Bozinis had not claimed any injuries at the scene of the accident. In addition, immediately following the car accident, Bozinis drove on to a family birthday party in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin.

Continue reading

by

Every day we get into cars with other drivers; however, we rarely think about the fact that we are entrusting our lives into those drivers. In the case of Cheri Razim, John Razim v. Steven R. Erickson, Zachary Stewart, 08 L 351 (Winnebago County), the plaintiff, Cheri Razim, sued the driver of her vehicle and the driver of the other vehicle involved for their cause in a motorcycle accident.

The Illinois motorcycle accident occurred on Memorial Day at a Winnebago County intersection. Razim was a passenger on Steven Erickson’s motorcycle, which was approaching the T-intersection; while Zachary Stewart was approaching from the opposite direction. Stewart made a left-hand turn in front of Erickson’s motorcycle. Erickson was unable to swerve out of the way and ended up striking the back of Stewart’s pickup with his motorcycle. Both Razim and Erickson were thrown from the motorcycle as it skid 98 feet from the site of impact.

As a result of the intersection accident, Razim sustained multiple fractures to her right arm, neck, femur, both legs, left ankle, and left foot. She was forced to undergo several surgeries, including an open reduction internal fixation of her right tibial plateau, left humerus, and right wrist. In addition, the multiple lacerations and abrasions she sustained required her to undergo plastic surgery and skin grafts on her right leg. The various procedures left Razim hospitalized for almost four weeks, with an additional six weeks needed at a rehab center. Despite her lengthy medical care, Razim is still primarily confined to a wheelchair and needs to keep her right leg straight and elevated due to venous insufficiency.

Continue reading

by

The Illinois Appellate Court reviewed the personal injury lawsuit of Anderson v. Anderson, 2011 Ill.App. (1st) 10034 (Sept. 30, 2011), to determine whether or not the trial judge had correctly ordered a new trial. After reviewing the case facts and the jury’s decision, the appellate court disagreed with the trial judge and reversed his order for a new trial. As a result, the not guilty verdict entered against the two defendants in Anderson stands.

Anderson arose out of a two-vehicle collision between a mini-van driven by defendant Sean Anderson and a vehicle driven by defendant Frank Fratto. The personal injury claim was filed by the six passengers in Anderson’s van at the time of the car accident and was brought against both of the drivers involved in the intersection accident. The personal injury claim alleged that both Anderson and Fratto were at fault for the auto crash and therefore were both responsible for the plaintiffs’ injuries.

However, the Illinois jury found in favor of both defendants and failed to find either at fault for the intersection accident. Rather than letting this verdict stand, the trial judge ruled that the verdict was invalid and granted a new trial. When defending his ruling, the judge stated that “the jury’s finding that neither was negligent given the facts of this case is unreasonable and against the manifest weight of the evidence. The jury had the discretion of apportioning the fault between the two parties, but a wash of liability is not an option when the injured is not an active participant in the cause of the incident.”

Continue reading

by

It is one of the first things you learn in driver’s ed and is repeated over and over again to new drivers: always keep your eyes on the road. However, this advice is useful not only for new drivers, but for experienced drivers, too. Take for instance the case of Benton Chapman, a 44 year-old truck driver who took his eyes off the road to adjust his radio and caused a multiple car accident on an Illinois expressway, Estate of Lafi Nofal, M.D., deceased, et al. v. Benton Chapman, Cardinal Transport, et al., 06 L 2263.

Immediately prior to the Illinois car crash, Chapman was driving a tractor-trailer truck along Illinois Interstate 55. Traffic was flowing at a reasonable speed and Mr. Chapman looked away from the road for a minute to adjust his XM Satellite radio. However, when he looked back to the roadway, Chapman discovered that the flow of traffic had slowed significantly and that he was driving way too fast.

Unfortunately, Chapman didn’t even have enough time to brake before crashing into the car immediately in front of him. Dorothy Walsh, that car’s driver, was killed as a result of the rear-end collision. However, Chapman’s truck did not stop there, but continued in its path, striking another vehicle driven by Magdi Hussein, a bobtail trailer, and three other vehicles. The severity of the Cook County highway accident caused the Stevenson Expressway to be closed for five hours.

Continue reading