Articles Posted in Bicycle Accidents

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Illinois has adopted House Bill 1247, which puts an end to the uncertainty as to whether drivers around the state can use hand-held wireless telephones while driving. Under the bill, which was signed into law by Gov. Pat Quinn, a person may not operate a vehicle on a roadway while using an electronic communication device. The law was passed to put to an end to the confusion from town, municipality to city as to what the law is relating to hand-held devices throughout Illinois.

Violation of this section is an offense against traffic regulations, which would result in a maximum fine of $75 for the first offense, $100 for the second offense, $125 for the third offense and $150 for the fourth offense.

The law does spell out some exceptions for law enforcement officers or persons operating emergency vehicles. The new law applies directly to those using wireless telephones. The act does cover portable or mobile computers and hand-held personal digital assistant devices.

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The Illinois Appellate Court has upheld a $1.9 million Cook County jury verdict for injuries to a man who was riding his bike on a city street that was under construction.

In July 2007, the city of Chicago was resurfacing an intersection, which altered the otherwise safe bicycle path. While under construction, the alteration resulted in a raised structure in the roadway and a shallow gash not readily visible to bikers.  The alteration by the city was the proximate cause of the biker’s injuries, the court concluded.

In upholding the jury verdict, the appellate court upheld the Cook County’s judge’s refusal of a special interrogatory on the grounds it was prejudicial and implied several questions inside one “deceptively brief” question.

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A bill signed into law by Illinois Gov. Patrick J. Quinn permits the Illinois Secretary of State to retroactively invalidate a driver’s license if the minor had a citation for which a disposition had not been rendered when the license was issued. In other words, a permit driver, 18 years old or younger, who has a pending traffic ticket, will be unable to obtain an Illinois driver’s license. 

This new law is effective immediately. The House Bill 1009 was sponsored by Rep. John D’Amico and Sen. Martin Sandoval, both Chicago Democrats.

In addition, the new law allows prosecutors to request the court to invalidate a driver’s license if he or she caused death or serious injury while breaking traffic rules.

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This case was brought before a jury panel twice. These were the facts:  On Sept. 6, 2006, Michael Lynn was bicycling on the sidewalk facing eastbound on the southwest corner of 33rd Street and Wentworth Avenue in Chicago when he was struck by the defendant’s car driven by James Miller. Miller had been driving southbound on Wentworth with a green light when he swerved to avoid another bicyclist who ran a red light on westbound 33rd Street.  This caused Miller to lose control, jump the curb and hit a tree.

Lynn, 21, who was entirely without fault, sustained a closed head injury, loss of consciousness, traumatic brain injury, four-part comminuted fracture of the left shoulder which was unoperated and bruises.

Lynn was taken by ambulance to Stroger Hospital in Chicago, where he suffered respiratory arrest, was intubated and was sedated in a four-day induced coma. 

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Thomas Miles, age 54, commuted to work regularly by bicycle. He was riding his bike northbound on California Avenue in Chicago on July 14, 2008 in the marked bike lane when he came upon a patch of wet cement in the street. The defendant Tai Plumbing had dug a 3-foot-wide trench across the northbound lanes to connect water and sewer lines for a building being developed by Forte Construction. On the day of this incident, the Tai Plumbing workers had filled the trench in the street with cement and moved operations to the sidewalk area without covering the wet concrete.

The front wheel of his bike sank into the wet concrete and caused his bike to stop suddenly and flip Miles over the handlebars. He landed head-first on the pavement. Miles suffered spinal subluxation fractures of the neck at C2-3. The injury required a fusion operation. For two and a half months, Miles was unable to swallow, requiring a feeding tube. In addition, Miles suffered from an incomplete spinal cord injury, constant paresthesia in both arms from elbows to fingertips, spasticity in both hands and balance problems. Miles had more than $358,000 in medical bills related to these injuries. 

At trial, Miles argued that Tai Plumbing chose not to comply with the pubic way construction permit by failing to employ flagmen at the work site. In addition, it was alleged that in failing to supply clear and positive tracking control, Tai Plumbing was also negligent. There were no warning signs posted.

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Bicyclist Christopher Olsen, 25, was riding his bike northbound on Dearborn between Monroe and Madison streets in downtown Chicago. He was traveling in the right curb lane when the defendant’s northbound Lexus Sedan made a right turn directly in front of him as he was trying to enter a parking garage. The defendant, Richard Galla, testified at trial that he was heading to a Loop theater with his wife and two grandchildren.

This incident occurred before the Dearborn Street bike lanes were segregated onto the west side of Dearborn.

Before the impact, Olsen braked but contact was made sending him flying over the hood of the Galla car before he hit the ground. Olsen sustained a non-displaced fracture of the radial head in his right elbow. He had five months of chiropractic care for the elbow and neck soreness. One year later, he developed cubital tunnel syndrome of the right hand as a result of the radial head fracture. This required a surgical procedure.

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Kristen Beauford was on her bicycle in the northbound bike lane at 100 S. Halsted in Chicago.  The defendant, Nicolas Kapsoulos, was driving his car away from a Starbucks at that Chicago Greektown location.  As Kapsoulos attempted to make a left turn onto northbound Halsted, he struck Kristen, who was on her bicycle. The car knocked her off her bike and onto the adjacent sidewalk. 

Ms. Beauford, 22, suffered a torn medial meniscus of her knee and a bulging back disc at the lowest level, L5-S1. She underwent epidural steroid injections and physical therapy.

Ms. Beauford lost 3 days of work as an office assistant. The defendant, Mr. Kapsoulos, admitted his negligence.  The issue at trial was the nature and extent of the plaintiff’s injuries. Before trial, Ms. Beauford made a demand to settle the case for $65,000. The offer made by the defendant was $994. 

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