Chicago Wrongful Death Lawyer Blog

The family of a Goleta man killed in a wrong-way freeway crash is getting $7 million from Verizon California as a result of a settlement agreement in the wrongful death lawsuit. The automobile accident occured when Verizon truck driver Mark William Selander was in the throes of a diabetic reaction and drove onto U.S. Highway 101 in Santa Barbara and headed in the wrong direction for eight miles. At that point he crahsed into 49-year-old Joe Vega's minivan killing him.

According to terms of the settlement agreement, Vega's widow Reyna gets $4 million, their two daughters each get $1 million and their two grandchildren each get $500,000. No amount of money will replace Mr. Vega but at least his surviving loved ones can get some money that may help them move past this. In many cases, the person responsible does not have much in the way of insurance so a large judgment which is collectable is not possible. Given all of the circumstances, they are at least fortunate that Verizon was capable of paying such a large amount.

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors will pay $400,000 to settle a wrongful death lawsuit brought by the parents of a 14-year-old boy detained at Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall. According to published reports, 14-year old Tremayne Cole began having fevers, headaches and toothaches and was taken to the juvenile court nursing staff several days in a row and given medication. The problem was he was not sent to a clinic for further treatment when he did not get better.

Cole was moved to a medical unit for observation 12 days later and then moved to County-USC Medical Center a day later and diagnosed with an infection. At this point Cole, who was described as 3 feet 11 inches tall and weighing 79 pounds, died of meningitis after being transferred to the hospital. This is a real tragedy and we feel for the parents of the young man. Hopefully the county will put in place better procedures to prevent this from happending in the future.

A contractor working for the city of Menlo Park has settled a wrongful death lawsuit $2.4 million. The wrongdul death lawsuit rose out of an accident in which a bicyclist died. Deborah Johnson fell and hit her head while riding on Sand Hill Road with friends. She was taken to the hospital and died two days later. In the lawsuit her husband alleged that Ms. Johnson fell when her bike hit the base of a detached cylindrical traffic marker in the bike lane.

This is a tragic accident and one that could have been avoided. Often times, just a little bit of neglect, like leaving a piece of concrete in a bike path, can cost a person their life and a company of city millions of dollars in damages.

Louisville Metro Government will pay $835,500 to settle a wrongful death lawsuit filed over the death of a man killed when a police officer struck him as he put gasoline into a friend's stranded vehicle along the Interstate. Louisville Metro Police Officer Kenten Measle was driving to work, speeding, when he swerved into an emergency lane, killing 37-year-old Donnie Puente and striking the stranded vehicle. Including settlement money from an insurance company, Puente's estate, his teenage daughter, and two injured passengers, will receive more than $1.3 million.

This type of accident is tragic and it is nice to see the family compensated. An accident reconstructionist ruled that Officer Measle was driving about 68 mph in a 55 mph zone and that inattention and disregard of traffic control contributed to the wreck. Hopefully all parties will be able to move on with their lives after this tragic accident.

The estate of a 17-year-old who was killed in a forklift accident at an Omaha meatpacking plant has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Greater Omaha Packing Company. The company has also been fined by the U.S. Department of Labor in connection with the accident. According to the lawsuit Miguel Herrera-Soltero was working in unsafe conditions at the plant when he died. He was driving a forklift on a ramp at the plant when the machine tipped and fell off the ramp.

The lawsuit alleges that Greater Omaha Packing Co., was negligent in failing to have a protective guardrail on the ramp. As a result of the accident the U.S. Department of Labor fined the company $100,000 for violating child labor laws in connection with the fatal accident. With many companies breaking unions in this country the working conditions inside many factories is getting worse.

The city of Portland and the family of James P. Chasse Jr. have reached a settlement in the family's federal wrongful death lawsuit, with the city paying $1.6 million. Chasee was a
42-year-old mentally ill man who died in police custody on Sept. 17, 2006. Aside from the money the family really wanted the release of the Portland internal affairs investigation, training and discipline records relevant to the case. The documents have been under a court protective order that was sought by the city since the beginning of the lawsuit. Under the terms of the settlement, all of the records will be released.

According to the wrongful death lawsult Chasse was tackled by three large men, "repeatedly and viciously punched, struck, kicked, kneed in the head, back, ribs and chest." He was repeatedly shot with a stun gun and then died when paramedics and jail medical staff failed to provide treatment. This is a very tragic case and shows what happens when the police believe they can do anything to anybody. Hopefully this settlement will change the behavior and proceedures the police utilize in the future.

A wrongful death lawsuit filed by the estate of Charles Gaston against the city of Danville was settled for $700,000. According to the lawsuit 17-year old Gaston was found in a collapsed stairwell at the Danville Illinois parking garage at the corner of North and Walnut streets. Mr. Gaston died of severe head injuries, according to a coroner's report. The lawsuit alleged that the city knew or should have known that the stairwell needed repairs or replacement which is a basic negligence complaint.

Three years before the accident, the parking garage stairwell was inspected by McClintock Civil Engineering Service, which reported to the city that the stairway was beginning to fail and cited an accumulation of "pack rust," a collection of rust between metal parts, as the problem. The engineer also reported that the stairwell had no connection at its base and that it was very springy and would be prone to collapse under occupant load. I can't believe this was allowed to go unrepaired.

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The family of Jaimee Kellermann settled their wrongful death lawsuit for $1.75 million against multiple defendants. Kellermann died when she and friends accepted a ride home from a Short Pump movie theater. The driver, Nathan DeFrank allegedly drove recklessly, sped and crashed into a tree, killing Kellermann. In what was the most damaging piece of evidence, Kellermann's last text message to her family, apparently written during the ride, saying she feared for her life.

Car accidents like this involving inexperienced drivers many times turn fatal. In many states inexperienced drivers cannot have more than one person in the car with them. This case was very tragic and shows that parents should watch closely who their child drives with.

"No boys with cars," he said, according to court records. Paula McDonough answered, "Don't worry, I promise we'll take good care of her."

Pfizer Inc. agreed to settle a a wrongful death lawsuit brought by a woman who claimed her husband's use of the antiseizure drug Neurontin caused him to commit suicide. The extra terms of the settlement are confidential which is not uncommon in a case like this. The wrongful death lawsuit was filed by Linda Shearer whose husband was prescribed Neurontin to help him with paralysis. The wrongful death lawsuit alleges Pfizer knew the drug, which wasn't approved by regulators, had a side effect of suicide but Pfizer did not let patients taking the drug know about this.

Recently a federal jury found against Pfizer and said it violated an antiracketeering law by promoting Neurontin for off-label uses, and awarded damages of $47 million, which are to be automatically tripled under the law. You can see that Pfizer is having problems with this drug and that may be one reason this case settled. Neurontin was previously one of Pfizer's best-selling drugs, generating $2.7 billion in sales in 2003 alone.

The Estate of Joe Loudon, the 16 year old who died after collapsing at an underage drinking party filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the parents and kids who purchased the alcohol. According to details in the lawsuit against Isabel and Scott Hamilton, who were out of town when the party was held without their permission, another minor used a fake I.D. to purchase the alcohol. An autopsy revealed only a small amount of alcohol in Loudon's system. At this time it is unclear if alcohol played a part in his death. Reports indicate the boy may have suffered from an undiagnosed heart ailment.

This is a tragic case involving a minor and it shows how liability may attach to someone who owns property even if they are not on the property when something bad happens. Many times kids don't realize the consequences on their actions until it is too late. Lets hope this lawsuit settles quickly so the parents don't have to re-live what happened and can try and get some closure to this horrible event.

The Frederick County jail will pay $50,000 to the family of Justin Lihvarcik, an inmate who hung himself while he was at the jail. According to the wrongful death lawsuit, the jail engaged in negligent behavior because he was suppose to be under the watch of guards at the time he died. According to the lawsuit 26 year old Lihvarcik was placed in a holding cell at approximately 2:30 a.m. after being charged with second-degree assault as a result of a fight with his girlfriend. Three hours later officers found the man hung from the top bunk of his cell by fashioning a noose from his shoelaces.

According to the policy in place at the jail the officers were suppose to check inmate cells every 20 minutes. It is not uncommon in wrongful death lawsuits to learn that policies and procedures are not being followed. It is hard to say if Lihvarcik would be alive today had the officers checked his cell every 20 minutes but policies are in place for a reason. This is a sad case and I am glad to see it resolved early so the family does not have to re-live the case over and over.

The estate James Minter filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the Chicago Transit Authority ("CTA") after Minter was fatally pinned under a bus. According to the lawsuit James Minter exited a No. 9 Ashland bus that pulled away from the West Harrison Street bus stop before he was safely on the curb, causing him to fall under the bus and fatally run over by the rear tires.

According to the lawsuit the driver failed to check the mirrors before moving the bus forward and failed to make sure the road was free from pedestrian traffic. Additionally, the lawsuit claims the bus driver failed to stop the bus after Minter fell. This type of accident is avoidable and very tragic. The damages that are available to the estate include lost wages, and loss of society from the deceased. Wrongful death lawsuits are very emotional lawsuits and sometimes hard for the family to proceed with.

CTA spokeswoman Katelyn Thrall said after the accident that preliminary reports indicated the bus was proceeding towards a green light when the man fell and was struck. The bus driver was removed from service following the accident, a standard procedure, Thrall said.