Trucking Accident Attorney Blog

As a St. Louis tractor-trailer accident lawyer, I was disappointed to read that a Missourian was involved in a high-profile truck crash that killed one at the Yale-Harvard football game. The New York Times reported Nov. 19 that Brendan Ross, a Yale student from O’Fallon, was driving a U-Haul truck that plowed into a crowd of people tailgating before the game. The crash killed 30-year-old Nancy Berry of Salem, Mass. and injured two other women. Ross was driving a truck full of beer kegs to the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity party, but police say he took a breath test and did not appear to be intoxicated at the time. Ross is not charged with a crime, and his attorney suggested that the crash could have been caused by a vehicle malfunction.

A student told the Times that Ross had stopped the truck at a checkpoint to determine who was of legal drinking age. Beyond the checkpoint was an open field full of U-Haul trucks parked in a way that allowed tailgaters to treat them as small rooms. As the truck started to pull away, witnesses said it accelerated and the driver lost control, hitting three people before crashing into another truck and stopping. In addition to Berry, the injured victims were Yale graduate student Sarah Short and Harvard employee Elizabeth Dernbach. Witnesses said Ross looked shocked and dazed when he climbed out of the truck. Yale announced after the crash that it would review its tailgating policies; Harvard declined to allow U-Haul tailgating when it hosted the game in 2010. Attorneys told the Litchfield County Times that Yale and the City of New Haven may both be held liable for insufficient security.

As a southern Illinois semi truck accident attorney, I would be interested to know what the results of the police investigation are. If Ross truly did pass a blood-alcohol test, the most obvious cause of the accident can be dismissed. There actually is some evidence that U-Haul trucks can malfunction. A series in the Los Angeles Times a few years ago looked at litigation against U-Haul and found evidence that it rented aging trucks with major mechanical problems or unattended maintenance, which sometimes resulted in fatal accidents. To make matters worse, the series found a pattern at the company of spoiling evidence against it in lawsuits. This isn’t to say that some other factor, including panic and inexperience by the driver, couldn’t be responsible for the crash. But I hope the New Haven police take the mechanical malfunction allegation seriously.

When trucks crash into smaller vehicles, they can do massive damage that wouldn’t be possible in a crash between two cars. That’s why Carey, Danis & Lowe focuses its practice on representing clients who were seriously hurt by a negligent trucker or trucking company. These are among the most serious accidents because they often cause catastrophic, permanent disabilities or death for their victims. In an instant, families can lose a loved one and often also a breadwinner, leaving them scrambling to make ends meet as high medical bills roll in. Our Missouri 18-wheeler accident lawyers help victims like these claim financial compensation from the people who harmed them — the negligent trucker or the trucking company that sent an unsafe vehicle or driver out on the road.

Continue reading "Yale Student From Missouri Reportedly Drove Truck Into Tailgating Crowd at Football Game" »

Usually when we discuss semi truck accidents, we're describing a situation in which one or more people have been seriously hurt, and in which traffic tends to be severely disrupted. In a recent Cedar Rapids accident, however, the noteworthy element wasn't so much the accident as the cargo that got spilled during the crash -- 45,000 pounds of Bud Light.

36 year old driver Travis Dicks, of Wisconsin, was traveling on I-380 North and transitioning on the ramp to Highway 30 West when he lost control of his vehicle. The semi overturned onto its side, sending the massive cargo of alcohol sprawling over the side of the ramp and onto the road. The fuel tank of the truck was also cracked, spilling several gallons of diesel fuel following the accident. However, fire rescue crews were able to seal this breach without any serious complications.

The truck overturned around 7am, and the ramp remained closed until 11:30 am, disrupting and slowing traffic for several hours. Wrecking and recovery crews were on the scene soon after the accident to right the vehicle and prevent more of the cargo from spilling out.

Thankfully, no one was hurt in this incident -- including the driver. Still, while the accident does have a humorous element to it, it shows how even the most simple of accidents that hurt no one can still have a serious disruption on traffic patterns. It is important to remember other, more serious accidents in which other drivers on the road are killed or injured by a semi, or in which the spilled cargo causes damage to the local ecosystem -- spilled diesel fuel alone is a hazard to people, plants and animals alike.

Still, there is something to laugh about when more than twenty tons of beer ends up spilled across the highway. While thankfully no one was hurt, it still didn't turn rush hour into happy hour.

As a southern Illinois tractor-trailer accident attorney, I was interested to read about a trucking accident case in which the family of three deceased victims had to fight through a trucking company’s bankruptcy to get the compensation they claimed. In Casaccio et al. v. Curtiss et al., Harold Curtiss sued trucking company Hartley Trucking over the deaths of his parents and sister. Hartley Trucking was bankrupt but had insurance through Converium. Another insurer, National Indemnity Co., later agreed to buy all or part of Converium, but failed to appear at the court-ordered mediation in the lawsuit filed by Curtiss. National Indemnity and its general counsel, Joseph Casaccio, were eventually sanctioned for failure to appear at these meetings — but the high court overturned the sanctions.

No details were given about the accident that killed the Curtisses. About two years after it, in May of 2005, Harold Curtiss filed a wrongful death lawsuit in his capacity as the executor of all three estates. The trial court ordered mediation between Curtiss and Converium to be concluded by mid-November. In mid-October, before the mediation, National Indemnity agreed to buy part or all of Converium, an agreement that included a clause gave Converium no authority to settle for more than $500,000. However, no one but Converium’s representative was aware of this, and the representative made a successful settlement offer of $900,000. The representative then revealed that she had no authority, but promised that the offer would not be used as leverage if National Indemnity refused the offer. The insurer refused the offer and made a counteroffer of $350,000, which was rejected.

The trial judge ordered another mediation and instructed the mediator to require the presence of Casaccio as a representative from National Indemnity. He did not appear, claiming that he missed a flight, but appeared by telephone. The judge issued a third mediation in his chambers for the next day, at which Casaccio did appear, and the case ultimately settled for $850,000. At the settlement hearing, the judge sua sponte set a sanctions hearing and eventually awarded a total of $225,000 in sanctions, plus attorney fees, against Casaccio and National Indemnity. As soon as that order became final, they appealed.

On appeal, the West Virginia Supreme Court narrowed the issues to two: Whether the trial court had the authority to impose sanctions in this case, and whether the conduct was sanctionable. West Virginia rules require insurance carriers for insured parties to appear at court-ordered mediations, where that representative has full decision-making discretion. Following precedent from California, the court construed the rule’s authorization of sanctions against parties to include non-party insurers, whose presence is vital for any settlement to be reached. Thus, it held that West Virginia rules require insurance carriers for insured parties to be construed as parties, and thus may be sanctioned for failing to send a fully authorized representative to mediations. However, in this particular case, it found that the conduct of Casaccio and National Indemnity was not sanctionable. National Indemnity received no notice of the first mediation, the high court said, and notice for the second was not “reasonable” because it was effectively only three days’ notice. And National Indemnity’s offer to settle for $350,000 was not made in bad faith because it didn’t know about the first mediation at the time, the court found. Thus, it reversed the sanctions order against Casaccio and National Indemnity.

Despite the reversal of the sanctions order, our St. Louis semi truck accident lawyers still believe the court still scored a major victory for mediation in West Virginia by bringing insurance companies and their representatives under the umbrella of “parties” to a case. As the court noted, the presence of an insurance company representative with authority to settle is vital to the success of a mediation. Insurance companies are usually funding the settlement in injury cases — and especially in trucking accident cases, which often involve very serious injuries carrying high price tags. In this case, the wrongful deaths of three people could have run much higher, depending on any medical costs and loss of income the family suffered. That’s why, as a Missouri big rig accident attorney, I press hard for a fair and full settlement for clients affected by the negligence of a trucker or trucking company.

Continue reading "West Virginia High Court Reverses Sanctions Against Trucking Insurer That Failed to Appear – Casaccio v. Curtiss" »

The family of a Farmington, Missouri truck driver was just awarded $7 million by a federal jury in his trucking death case. Roger Reagan was killed when his semi was struck by another trucker's vehicle in Northern Arkansas. The jury found against driver Morgan Quisenberry and his employer, Dunway Timber Company.

Quisenberry was heading west on US highway 62 on September 3, 2008. His vehicle crossed the eastbound lanes and struck Reagan's truck, killing the other man. According to records, Quisenberry was driving for long hours past the legal cutoff limit, and was severely fatigued. It appears he either became distracted, or dozed off at the wheel, losing control of his vehicle and leading to the accident.

Reagan's attorney, Kent Emison, was quoted as saying, "The driver had inadequate experience and had a horrible driving record,” referring to Quisenberry. Emison went on to say, “I think the most significant thing about the case is that driving while fatigued or tired is just as dangerous as driving under the influence.”

Representatives of Dunway Timber Company declined to comment on the judgment, saying specifically they had and would have no comment. A number listed for Quisenberry was found to be disconnected when reporters tried to call him.

Emison's comment on the danger of driving while fatigued is worth noting. People make more mistakes when exhausted; mental capacity and alertness decline quickly with each hour spent awake past normal resting hours; and physical coordination and response times also decline rapidly. When a truck driver is operating a multiple ton vehicle at highway speeds, they need all their mental and physical abilities operating at normal levels. Being exhausted not only increases the likelihood of making a dangerous mistake such as not noticing another driver on the road or drifting over a lane, but it also reduces a driver's ability to respond to errors, leading to overcorrecting or failing to respond in time, and as this case shows, the results can be tragic and costly.

One frequent theme in my work as a Missouri tractor-trailer accident lawyer has been truck drivers who aren’t paying enough attention. Due to fatigue, distraction substance abuse and other problems, truckers occasionally cause devastating high-speed crashes by failing to slow or stop for traffic ahead. This was the case for several recent high-profile commercial truck accidents, including the June 2009 crash that took 10 lives in Oklahoma and the 2008 crash on Interstate 40 here in Missouri. Now, the Associated Press reports that inattention is responsible for another serious crash in upstate New York. Investigators into an accident near the Finger Lakes last July concluded that a trucker could easily have avoided the rear-end crash that killed him and wounded 52 people on a tour bus.

The bus was taking insurance company employees from Canada to New York City, but had encountered mechanical problems requiring it to pull over. When the bus driver pulled back into traffic, state police investigators believe it was going no more than 25 mph and had its emergency lights flashing. Another truck driver who witnessed the crash said he pulled into the passing lane after noticing the bus pulling into the right lane more than a quarter-mile ahead. But then, he said, trucker Timothy Hume of Michigan sailed by in the right lane, apparently without noticing the slow-moving bus. Hume reportedly failed to brake before plowing into the back of the bus, causing both vehicles to bust into flames. Hume died at the scene and almost all 52 people on the bus were injured, at least two seriously. A passing motorist, a soldier on leave, ran into the burning bus several times to rescue passengers. The state police do not plan any criminal charges.

As a St. Louis semi truck accident attorney, I wonder if those plans would be different if Hume had lived. Failing to brake to avoid a rear-end crash is a classic example of negligent driving. In fact, insurance companies often just assume the driver of the behind vehicle in a rear-end crash is at fault. It’s telling that the truck driver who witnessed the crash told state police he thought Hume might be asleep at the wheel or otherwise incapacitated. Truck drivers are required by law to rest for a certain amount of time per day and per week, and part of the reason why is the risk of accidents from fatigued driving. Other explanations could include a distraction like a cell phone, drug or alcohol abuse or mechanical problems with brakes. Though Hume cannot answer these questions, investigators — or victims interested in filing a legal claim — may want to put them to the trucking company that employed him.

If you’ve been hurt through no fault of your own by a crash with a large truck, you should call Carey, Danis & Lowe to discuss how we can help. Our southern Illinois 18-wheeler accident lawyers focus our practice on accidents involving large commercial trucks because we know how catastrophic they can be. The vast difference in size and weight between a passenger vehicle and a big rig means the people in the smaller car are far more likely to be killed or seriously hurt, regardless of who was at fault. To make matters worse, because accidents are just another part of business for trucking companies, those companies know what to do after a crash to minimize their liability at the expense of the victims. That’s why it’s absolutely vital not to sign anything or take any money from a trucking or insurance company until you talk to an experienced lawyer.

Continue reading "Accident Investigators Conclude Trucker Failed to Brake in Fatal Accident With Tour Bus" »

Two recent semi truck accidents each claimed the life of a single victim. Semi trucks are very large vehicles that create an extensive danger zone around them. They are difficult to stop, take special effort to maneuver, require extensive maintenance to operate properly, and have massive blind spots that make it difficult for their drivers to see all areas of the road.

In the first accident, a man was killed in South Carolina's Florence County. The accident involved the man's Chevy Traverse, another driver's Toyota Corolla, and the tractor trailer. The accident took place on I-95.

Florence County Coroner, M.G. “Bubba” Matthews, identified the victim as Gerald R. Harrington of Lugard, South Carolina. He was 60 years old at the time of death. Four other people involved in the accident were taken to area hospitals for assorted injuries from the accident. According to West Florence Fire Capt., Anthony Fox, the accident shut down a portion of the interstate for several hours.

In the second accident, it was the driver of the semi truck that was killed. On highway 52 in Indiana's Rush County, the driver of a semi truck rolled his vehicle, and died as a result. The semi came to rest on its top, and the cab was completely crushed. The driver died as a result of trauma received in the accident. Police were alerted to the accident and responded quickly. When they arrived, they found the vehicle, a 2004 Freightliner, lying on its top. According to witness and police accounts, the driver was pulling a flatbed trailer full of shingles when he began to drift off the side of the road. He attempted to correct, but overcompensated and crossed over the highway before spilling off the left side of the road entirely.

The driver of the truck was identified as Brian Moore, of Laurel Indiana. He was 43.

As a Missouri semi truck accident attorney, I’m well aware of the dangers that commercial trucks can pose even when they’re parked, if they’re not parked safely. So I was pleased to see a Nov. 1 article in the Kansas City Star announcing that the Missouri Department of Transportation will install $1 million worth of truck turnouts along Interstate 70. The highway is a frequently used corridor for truckers, and the article says the 18-wheeler traffic is expected to double by 2030. The money comes from a federal grant from the Federal Highway Administration, part of the U.S. Department of Transportation. MoDOT expects to start construction by 2012.

Interstate 70 is the major east-west highway through Missouri, connecting Kansas City with St. Louis before heading through Kansas to the west and towards Indianapolis in the east. Because of this, semi trucks use it frequently. As an official from the Owner-Operator Driver Association told Land Line magazine, truck drivers also face the challenge of finding a safe place to pull over and take their legally mandated rest breaks, which are required once in a 24-hour period to ensure that drivers get adequate rest. A spokesperson for MoDOT told Land Line that the new spaces are necessary for Missouri to take advantage of its status as a freight hub. The interstate currently has 207 dedicated parking spaces for trucks in Missouri; that number has doubled in recent years. The articles did not place a number on how many new spaces would be created, but MoDOT solicited opinions from truckers about where the spaces should go.

This is good news for the trucking industry, and I believe it’s also good news for ordinary drivers and St. Louis tractor-trailer accident lawyers like me. It is in everybody’s best interests for drivers to be able to take their breaks in a safe way. When drivers don’t take breaks at all, they’re not just breaking the law — they’re also increasing their risk of a catastrophic crash caused by fatigue and inattention. Most often, this kind of crash ends up hurting innocent passing motorists the most, because the size and weight of a semi truck gives it the power to destroy a smaller passenger car or truck, even at relatively low speeds. For the same reason, an improperly parked semi can pose a danger, particularly when it’s dark, poorly marked or parked in a traffic lane. Drivers who aren’t given proper notice or aren’t paying attention can be killed or gravely injured when they rear-end a truck at highway speeds. That’s why designated off-highway parking spots for large trucks benefit everyone on the road.

At Carey, Danis & Lowe, we represent clients across Missouri who suffered a loss in the family or a serious injury because of a carelessly operated commercial truck. That includes trucks whose drivers made bad decisions or failed to pay attention, as well as trucks that were unsafe to begin with because of the trucking company’s failure to maintain or inspect it properly. Frequently, the people in the smaller vehicles around them, who did nothing wrong, suffer the bulk of the injuries. Our southern Illinois big rig accident attorneys help families in this position seek justice by holding the negligent parties legally responsible. In a lawsuit, you can claim financial damages for all of your injuries, including doctor bills now and in the future and the cost of missed work, as well as compensation for your physical and emotional injuries.

Continue reading "MoDOT Receives $1 Million to Install Commercial Truck Rest Stops Along I-70 Corridor" »

Seven people are dead and five others are in the hospital following a semi truck accident in northern Indiana on Thursday, October 27th.

A tractor-trailer was traveling along the Indiana Toll Road just south of the Michigan border when it struck a minivan from behind. The van was carrying 10 passengers at the time of the accident. Seven passengers from the van died at the scene of the impact, while four others were taken to local hospitals for additional treatment. Two of the passengers had to be airlifted to the hospital. The driver of the semi truck was also injured and was transported to the hospital.

The names of the seven dead passengers, the four survivors and the semi truck driver have not been released at the time of writing. However, it is evident that the van had an Illinois license plate, while the semi truck had a Wisconsin plate. Still, Indiana State Police spokesman, Sgt. Trent Smith, said, "That's not to say that the driver of the truck was from Wisconsin or the driver of the minivan was from Illinois, but that's where the vehicles were registered."

The crash took place around 8 pm on Thursday the 27th, and did not involve any other vehicles. The incident was serious enough to shut down the Indiana Toll Road for four hours, with officials reopening the road around midnight. The investigation into the exact cause of the crash is still ongoing. In many states, police operate on the presumption that any driver colliding with the back of another vehicle is the one at fault in an accident, though it is unclear if this is the case in Indiana.