On the South Side of Chicago a single car accident has resulted in a nine-year-old’s head being thrown into a windshield, and the child’s mother being charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, according to ABC News. The mother, Cheryl Ranae Reynolds, hit a viaduct Saturday night near East 83rd and South Jeffery after she allegedly reached down to pick up a bottle alcohol she dropped on the floor.
The mother has been charged with aggravated DUI and not wearing a seat belt. The Chicago Police Department is handling the investigation. The extent of the child’s injuries have not yet been reported.
While the mother caused the accident, that fact does not bar an injury claim by the minor child against her mother and mother’s auto insurance carrier. If the mother had valid auto insurance, the child will be able to pursue a claim.
In a similar case, personal injury and wrongful death lawyers at Abels & Annes currently represent a father who lost his two daughters in an auto accident. The girls were in their mother’s minivan when she crossed the center line and struck another vehicle head on.
The fact that the mother’s actions caused the accident does not bar the childrens’ estates from recovering against the mother’s estate and her insurance company. Car accident lawyers at our law firm expect to recover the insurance policy limits on behalf of the childrens’ estates over the next several weeks.