Articles Posted in Wrongful Death

When the actions of another person affect your life, the laws in Illinois may provide an avenue toward financial relief. Civil claims can allow injured or harmed individuals to get their day in court and to obtain monetary compensation for the suffering they endured. But in some cases, no amount of money will ever be considered adequate, and in the case where someone loses their life, the wrong done can never be undone. However, relief can help a family move beyond an accident by allowing them the security to pay their bills, provide for children, and otherwise cover the monetary aspects of their loss.

If you have questions about the availability of a wrongful death claim for an incident that occurred in Illinois, speaking with an experienced personal injury attorney can help you understand your options.

Generally, a wrongful death claim may be available where one person’s death was caused by another. It can be in the context of a medical mistake or a surgery that went wrong or it can involve an accident like a car crash or a fall. Wrongful death claims can also occur in the context of a job-related incident or where an employee is working on the clock and is killed. The facts surrounding a specific incident are crucial in determining whether legal liability exists following any deaths.

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Between the late 19th century and into the 1970s, asbestos was a popular choice among manufacturers and builders for a range of purposes including electrical and building insulation. Asbestos is a set of six naturally occurring silicate minerals and therefore was widely available to meet consumer needs. From the time corporations began to heavily mine asbestos, though, the heath conditions associated with it and its fibers began to appear.

Today, health officials and scientists know that inhalation of asbestos fibers, especially over the long term, can cause substantial impacts to victims and can trigger a number of diseases. Among the most common conditions to result from asbestos exposure are lung cancer, mesothelioma, and asbestosis. Most Americans are familiar with lung cancer and the type caused by asbestos can be similar to cancers caused by other means. But fewer people truly understand mesothelioma and asbestosis as they apply to asbestos exposure and therefore may be confused if they find themselves or their loved one facing such a diagnosis.
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If you live in the City of Chicago, you may expect the City to perform certain tasks and certain duties to ensure your safety on a daily basis. From maintaining the roads and intersections to ensuring pedestrian crosswalks, there are many areas of Chicago that are designed or maintained with safety in mind.

Police serve a vital function in this arena as they patrol the streets to help citizens and improve safety. Officers may be on the lookout for traffic violators or for those who drive in an unsafe manner. However, the actions of police officers themselves can also contribute to the safety of an area and in some cases, detract from it. When a car accident happens and a City of Chicago employee is involved, the results to a victim can be devastating. From broken bones to bumps and bruises and even head and neck injuries, these victims can be left with injuries that may require medical treatment and may force them to incur medical bills. In the worst instances, a victim may lose his or her life due to a collision and the victim’s surviving family members may possess the right to seek a wrongful death claim due to that incomprehensible loss.

A skilled personal injury attorney can help you understand your options and your legal rights if a collision has affected you or has harmed your loved one. The possible relief may vary based on the facts surrounding an accident so it is a good idea to get your information from a lawyer who has experience with cases against the City of Chicago or local police departments so that you understand how your claim may be affected.

Shortly after 1:00 a.m. on Wednesday, a male pedestrian believed to be in his 40s or 50s was allegedly hit by an unmarked police car while he walked along the 2800 block of East 79th Street. At this point in time, little has been confirmed about the collision other than the fact that the man was critically injured and died as a result of the accident.

Witnesses at the scene claim that the street lights along the block at issue were out and, according to the Chicago Tribune, 311 reports requesting to have the street lights fixed were logged on January 29, 2015. Despite this, the City of Chicago has not confirmed that the lights were out nor stated why they had not been fixed since the issue was first reported.
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Car accidents are the leading cause of unintentional death among teens ages 15-19 in this country, but teens are far from the only victims who lose their lives in traffic incidents. Rather, car accidents claim hundreds of lives every year in Illinois and many of those come from Cook County accidents. If you live in, work in, or visit Chicago, you are at a risk for being involved in a collision and that crash may cause you to sustain injuries or even lose your life.

If you have been involved in a car accident or if your loved one was killed in a crash, you know how devastating these accidents can be. Often, a family will never fully recover from the damage caused when a negligent driver causes a collision even if a loved one survives. The laws in Chicago and in the State of Illinois enable victims to seek relief, though, even if no amount of relief can be considered adequate due to the loss of a loved one. Nonetheless, financial compensation can be obtained and can help these family members cover expenses following a crash. Speaking to a personal injury lawyer in Chicago about a wrongful death claim may help you understand your options if a collision has affected your life or if your family lost someone in a crash.

On November 22, 2014, an SUV traveling on I-57 rolled over, ejecting a female passenger and leaving her with critical injuries. Emergency crews responded to the scene and evaluated the 30-year-old woman, transporting her to an area hospital for treatment. Though she survived the accident and the month that followed, officials have now confirmed that the woman died on December 26, 2014 due to the injuries she sustained in the collision.

The incident that claimed the woman’s life occurred on I-57 southbound near 138th Street in the afternoon hours. For reasons that are not yet clear, the operator of the SUV, a 58-year-old man, lost control of the vehicle and it rolled over, ejecting the female passenger and leaving the driver with injuries. The driver was treated for injuries more minor than those of his passenger and previously was cited for improper lane usage in response to this accident. The death of the passenger may lead to additional charges, though no definitive announcement has been made at this time.
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Any accident that happens can be devastating, regardless of the outcome and the damages that occur. But when a victim loses his or her life in a car accident, those loved ones who are left behind will never recover. There is nothing than can bring back a victim or that can undo the suffering experienced by those that knew him or her.

The laws in Illinois entitled the family members of these victims to seek compensation for their damages even though no amount of money can ever be considered adequate. Relief can enable families to obtain the help they need to pay their expenses and to cover other damages left behind once the dust settles. In Chicago, it is possible to bring a wrongful death claim with the help of a personal injury lawyer to obtain the relief that your family deserves if your loved one was killed in an accident. These claims must be brought within a period of time specified by law and multiple claims may be possible so it is wise to consult with a lawyer after the accident takes place.

A collision occurred in Chicago on Sunday morning and claimed the lives of two people involved. Officials have reported that an SUV traveling in the 1600 block of West Webster Avenue struck the side of a second vehicle before the SUV continued traveling. Approximately two blocks later, the SUV crashed again, but this time collided with a parked car, bringing the vehicle to a stop. The driver of the SUV, a 40-year-old man, was killed in the accident and so was a 37-year-old female passenger who was believed to be in the front seat prior to the crash.

Two other people were injured in the accident and needed medical assistance at different area hospitals. Officials have not confirmed whether these two other victims were inside the SUV or whether they were in or near one of the other vehicles involved, though the review of the facts of the collision is still ongoing at this time. It is not clear what types of injuries were sustained or whether either of the surviving victims faced life-threatening injuries.
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In Chicago like anywhere else in the country, a car accident can happen in a matter of seconds. A driver may lose focus on the road, an accident up ahead may cause a chain reaction, or debris on a highway may cause a crash when all seemed fine moments earlier.

Some accidents are unavoidable and no one is to blame for them, but that is not the case in the majority of collisions. Usually, a mistake on the part of one or more individuals involved leads to the crash and is to blame for any injuries that result. When negligence or a mistake lead to injuries, the victims of that crash may be entitled to relief under the laws of Chicago and Illinois. Speaking with a personal injury lawyer who has experience representing the victims of car crashes may be a good place to start if your accident left you hurt and you are unsure of your legal options.

A 56-year-old Aurora resident was driving westbound on the Indiana Toll Road on Sunday evening when officials say she lost control of her vehicle. The woman allegedly struck a guard rail which sent her across two lanes of westbound traffic and into the median dividing the highway. The car entered the eastbound lanes of traffic, struck another guardrail, and then reportedly struck a semi-truck that was traveling in the area before coming to a rest.

Police and emergency crews responded to the scene of the collision and assessed all those involved. The woman driving the car was injured and was transported to Memorial Hospital of South Bend for treatment. Her passenger, a 57-year-old man identified as her husband, was trapped inside the vehicle following the collision and had to be removed. Unfortunately his injuries were too severe and he was pronounced dead at the scene as a result.

The sole occupant of the semi-truck, a 54-year-old male driver, was not injured in the incident and did not require hospitalization.
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Drivers are charged with certain responsibilities and obligations to the passengers they transport. In Chicago, drivers must act with due care and exercise good judgment to put the safety of others first. Failing to use caution and care may result in a collision, and if a passenger is killed in a crash, the driver may face serious consequences. In addition to any traffic or criminal charges assessed by the State of Illinois, the victim’s surviving family members may be entitled to bring a claim for wrongful death against the negligent driver.

A wrongful death claim can be brought so that victims can seek to recover the compensation they deserve. Though no amount of money can properly compensate a family for the loss of their loved ones, the payment may be able to help ease the financial strain of losing a family member who helped contribute to the family’s financial and emotional success. A lawyer can help you understand whether you may be entitled to bring a claim for your losses after an accident claims the life of your loved one.

Unfortunately, it appears that a driver may have been negligent in a Friday crash that led to the death of her young passenger. The incident happened in Oswego on Route 30, east of Fifth Street and occurred shortly before 7:00 p.m. Two cars were involved in a head-on crash when one car crossed the center line of Route 30 and entered the path of travel of the second car. The impact was reportedly significant and led to injuries to the driver and passenger of the first car and the driver of the second car. The first car’s driver, a 24-year-old female, was transported by ambulance to Rush-Copley Hospital where she was expected to survive. The 61-year-old male driver of the second car was treated by medical personnel and released some time later. But the 21-year-old male passenger of the first vehicle succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene by officials responding to the crash.

At this time, officials belief that the driver of the first car crossed the center line, causing the collision, but they are not sure what led the driver to cross, if in fact that is what happened. Impairment is not believed to be a factor at this time. Police are conducting an investigation into the incident to determine if one or both of the drivers were at fault and what factors caused the collision and caused the young victim to lose his life.
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