St. Louis Injury Lawyer Blog

Madison County, Illinois, and surrounding areas reported signficant snowfall. The snow was removed quickly, but some areas remain partially snow and ice covered and are still dangerous. The initial snowfall caused several accidents involving personal injury to drivers and passengers.

In nearby Marion County, four vehicles lost control and drove off Interstate 57. Two more slid off U.S. 51 near Sandoval and Patoka. Another ran off U.S. 50 West of Odin.

There was at least one fatal accident in Macoupin County between St. Louis and Springfield. A Litchfield resident, 30-year-old Jason Starr, died when his vehicle lost control on a two lane highway, Illinois Route 16, and struck the back of a pickup truck. his vehicle then slipped into a ditch, struck a road sign and overturned. Two people in the pickup truck were not hurt.

The State Department of Transportation indicates that the roads have returned to near normal winter driving conditions. However, there are scattered icy spots on major highways and city streets.

Continue reading "Midwest Weather Causes Fatality And Numerous Car Accidents" »

An automobile accident took the lives of a young Godfrey, Illinois, couple on Sunday December 20. Nicole and Chad Thorpe, both 27, and parents to a young two year old son, were tragically killed on Humbert road near Richland Woods Dr.. It appeared their 2007 Ford Edge ran off the road, struck a tree and flipped over. Sheriff's Deputies said the vehicle was engulfed in flames when they arrived on the scene.

What caused the vehicle to swerve off the road is still unknown. The Madison County Sheriff's Department is conducting an investigation into the possible cause. Both occupants suffered severe burns and were identified by dental records Monday. The coroner stated both victims died from smoke inhalation.

The car apparently was traveling north on Humbert Road and drove off the east side of the road before striking the tree. At this point, there is no evidence or report as to why the vehicle caught on fire. According to the National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA), there were an average of 356,000 vehicle fires and 512 civilian deaths reported between 1998 and 2002. Per the NFPA report, 3 out of every 5 passenger road vehicle fire deaths occurred in fires caused by collisions or overturns.

Continue reading "Auto accident on Humbert Rd. kills young couple" »

A personal injury case brought against Dr. Michael Jones, Dr. John Kleinhoffer and Frey Properties was filed at the Madison County Circuit Court on Dec. 14. Geraldine Augustine claims she slipped and fell on ice outside her doctors' office on December 17, 2007, in Highland Illinois. The office of Jones and Kleinhoffer was leased from Frey Properties.

The suit states that the doctors' office did not provide a safe entry into their establishment during icy conditions which resulted in the plaintiffs injuries. Augustine suffered from a torn rotator cuff in her left arm. She also incurred medical, hospital, physical therapy, and pharmacy costs. Augustine is seeking a judgement of $225,000 plus costs in this case.

Something as simple as a freshly mopped floor or an unmaintained walkway can result in patients possibly getting seriously injured. Thousands of people are hurt in slip and fall accidents every year. Property owners have a legal obligation to keep their premises safe and should be held accountable if they fail to do so.

If you or a loved one have been injured in a slip and fall accident please contact the attorneys at WWF&G, located at 603 Henry St. in Alton Illinois. (618) 462-1077. All attorneys are licensed in both Missouri and Illinois.

Walmart has been added as a defendant to a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the estate of a pedestrian killed on Godfrey Rd. in Madison County, Illinois on December 27, 2008. A man walking down Godfrey Rd. was struck and killed by a GMC Safari. The driver left the scene in what appeared to be a hit and run accident, but he returned to the scene. During his deposition, he admitted to drinking alcohol which he believes he purchased at Walmart.

On December 17, 2009, Walmart was added as a dramshop defendant in this case. Illinois dramshop laws allow a recovery against the seller of alcohol when the alcohol sold contributes to an accident.

The claim was brought by the family of the decedent, who was survived by his wife and two children. The family is represented by Michael P. Glisson, of the law firm of WWF&G of Alton, Illinois. The claim will be set for case management after Walmart formally enters its appearance.

If you or a family member has been injured in an alcohol related accident, you should contact an Illinois personal injury attorney

A home in Collinsville, Illinois woke up to a Madison County Transit bus crushing one side of the home this past Saturday just after midnight. As a result of the bus accident, the home has been designated as unsafe to inhabit.

Homeowner June Willeford was in her second-floor bedroom when the bus hit the house. She said that she next heard her son scream from the basement, and she ran downstairs to check on him. Then, she want back upstairs and out the front door and found the bus under her side porch. Amazingly, there were no personal injuries.

According to news reports, the bus veered off the street and drove through the parking lot at Thomas Brothers Automotive next door, then over a chain-linked fence before hitting a porch on the side of Willeford's house. The homeowner has moved into a Drury Inn until the damage can be repaired. No investigative reports have been issued.

Madison County Transit is a publicly funded governmental organization that offers fixed bus routes and other services. Some of its buses will have up to 5 cameras running at all times that should depict more details of the accident.

Continue reading "Madison County Illinois Transit Bus Drives Into Home" »

A Jersey County Illinois jury has awarded more than a half-million dollars to the family of a woman killed in a 2007 drunken driving incident. The jury returned the $549,954.11 verdict after a two-day civil trial on November 18, 2009, in Jersey County Circuit Court, with Judge Eric Pistorius presiding.

Jerica Klocke, 19, of Batchtown, died following a motorcycle accident in 2007. She had been a passenger on a motorcycle driven by Donald Adcock, 24, of Carrollton, who was pronounced dead at the scene by Jersey County Coroner Larry Alexander. Klocke was flown from the scene to St. John's Hospital in Springfield, where she died at 2:56 p.m. the same day.

A summary read to the jury by Circuit Court Judge Pistorious stated that the plaintiffs, the family of Jerica Klocke, brought the claim pursuant to the Dramshop Act. The plaintiff claimed that Adcock consumed alcohol at both Thirsty's Tavern and at Bawana's Nutwood Tavern and became intoxicated as a result of the alcohol he consumed and that his intoxication was one of the causes of Klocke's death. The defendants had denied liability in Klocke's death.

At the time of the accident, Thirsty's Tavern Inc. was owned by Donald Adcock and his father, Roger. Bawana's Nutwood Tavern, was owned by Stephen Wilson. (Wilson was named individually in the suit, but Roger Adcock was not).

According to Klocke family attorney Mike Glisson, of Williamson, Webster, Falb & Glisson, of Alton, Klocke's grandmother had died the Friday evening before the motorcycle wreck. Jerica Klocke went to be with a girlfriend. The girlfriend arranged for Jerica to ride on a motorcycle driven by Adcock, who did not appear to be intoxicated, according to several witnesses, but whose toxicological report revealed he had a blood alcohol level of 0.15 percent at the time of his death. The legal limit in Illinois is 0.08. Jerica Klocke's toxicological report revealed no alcohol.

Testimony revealed that Adcock lost control of his motorcycle, leaving a skid mark of 177 feet as he approached the intersection of Reddish Road and Dunham Road.

Forensic toxicologist Dr. Chris Long, of Saint Louis University, testified that while witnesses testified that Adcock did not appear impaired he would have to have been. The 0.15 level would have impaired his depth perception, balance on the motorcycle and reasoning, he said.

After deliberating for three hours, the jury returned a verdict Wednesday, ruling in favor of the plaintiffs and against Thirsty's Tavern, but not Bawana's, apparently determining that the intoxication had taken place at Thirsty's.

The jury awarded $500,000 in loss of relationship and $49,954.11 for medical and funeral bills, the exact amount requested by Plaintiffs in closing arguments by family attorney Mike Glisson. The verdict is one of the biggest verdicts recorded in Jersey County.

Continue reading "Jersey County Illinois Jury Renders Wrongful Death Verdict" »