Missouri Accident Lawyer Blog

Austin Block, 18 of New Haven, Missouri sustained moderate personal injuries in a car accident yesterday when his vehicle was hit by a 1999 Mercury, operated by Charles Boswell of Mexico, Missouri.

After Mr. Block's vehicle was hit, it was forced into another vehicle, operated by Kathryn Peterson, of Hannibal, Missouri. Ms. Peterson only suffered minor injuries.

All persons involved were transported to local hospitals for evaluation. Ms. Boswell and Ms. Peterson were insured by State Farm. Mr. Bloch was insured by Shelter insurance company.

Federal Judge Stephen Limbaugh has dismissed the lawsuit filed by Bill Haas to prevent the closure of Highway 64 in St. Louis, Missouri. Mr. Haas lawsuit alleged the Missouri Department of Transportation was in violation of federal law when it allegedly failed to investigate alternative ways to facilitate the construction without shutting down the entire highway. However, Judge Limbaugh determined Mr. Haas lacked standing and therefore dismissed the lawsuit.

Under Missouri and federal law, every plaintiff must have what is called "standing" in order to maintain a lawsuit. This includes being able to show that one has been injured from the alleged conduct. The Court found Mr. Haas failed to proffer any evidence that he would be damaged by the closure. The order stated “All plaintiff has done is assert some generalized claims of vague injury on behalf of the public at large and not himself.”

A V-tailed Bonanza passenger airplane crashed near Springfield, Illinois in Sangamon County today. The four seat aircraft was attempting to land at Abraham Lincoln Capital Airport, when it crashed approximately a hundred yards from the Farmingdale Road and Highway 54 intersection.

At this time, authorities say at least three men were killed in this Illinois airplane accident. Initially, it was thought a fourth man was in the airplane, however no other victim has been found. Nobody on the ground was reported to be injured.

The names of the victims has not been released and it is not yet apparent if they have been identified. State police and the FAA responded to further investigate.

When the victims are identified, we will update the blog.

Witnesses indicate they saw the airplane looping towards the ground. This often times indicates something went wrong with the aircraft. The FAA will conduct an investigation and determine the cause of the crash.

Deborah K. Schumacher, 53 of Robertsville, Missouri and Brian Irwin, 27 of Desoto, Missouri were both injured today in a Missouri car accident on Highway V approximately half a mile south of Mount Olive Road.

According to the Missouri Highway Patrol, Mr. Irwin was southbound on Route V when he lost control of his 2005 Dodge Sratus, crossed the center line and hit Ms. Schumacher's 2005 Chevrolet Avalanche head on.

Ms. Schumacher was transported to Jefferson Memorial Hospital by Valley Ambulance where she was listed as having serious personal injuries.

Mr. Irwin was taken to St. Johns Hospital in Creve Coeur by Air Evac. He was also listed as having serious personal injury.

Ms. Schumacher was wearing her seat belt in this car accident. Is it unknown whether Mr. Irwin was wearing his seat belt.

As a Missouri personal injury lawyer that deals with car accidents and wrongful deaths as a result of those car wrecks, it is always frustrating dealing with people who cause accidents, then flee the scene. This is especially true when that person wrongfully kills an innocent motorist. Fleeing the scene of a motor vehicle accident in Missouri is a felony if there is injury to a person. In my opinion, this is the ultimate act of cowardliness.

Yesterday, Joshua Logsdon, a 25 year old man from St. Charles, Missouri caused a multi-car accident that ended in the death of Lisa O'Bannon, a 45 year old woman from Maryland Heights, Missouri and her 12 year old daughter, Erin O'Bannon.

Witnesses told police Logsdon was merging onto I-70 from Cave Springs Road in St. Charles, Missouri when he decided to pass a tractor trailer driven by Dennis R. Bost of Hazelwood, Missouri while on the entrance ramp. In the middle of this ridiculous maneuver, his Chevrolet S-10 pickup truck went out of control, through a grassy median and onto I-70, where it hit two other cars before finally coming to a stop. One of the vehicles he hit was a 2006 Volvo Tractor Trailer operated by Timothy Burke of St. Louis, Missouri and a 1996 Lumina operated by Robin Downs of St. Louis. Ms. Downs suffered moderate personal injuries and was taken to St. John's Hospital in Creve Coeur, Missouri by St. Charles ambulance.

After this initial car accident was over and done with, other vehicles were approaching. Lisa O'Bannon, William O'Bannon and Erin O'Bannon were in their 2005 Dodge Caravan and stopped without becoming involved in this accident caused by Mr. Logsdon. At that time, a 2007 Western Star Tractor trailer operated by Michael Lair, 58 of Morrisdale, Pennsylvania, could not stop and crashed into the O'Bannon's minivan. William was taken to St. Joseph's Health Center and was listed as having serious personal injuries. Unfortunately, Lisa O'Bannon was killed along with her 12 year old daughter Erin.

It is unknown why the tractor trailer was unable to stop in this wreck.

Meanwhile, Mr. Logsdon was busy fleeing the scene of this horrific accident scene. At this time, Mr. Logsdon has not been apprehended. If anyone knows the whereabouts of this individual, please contact the Missouri Highway Patrol at Troop C Headquarters in St. Louis, Missouri at 314-340-4000.

It is my deepest hope this individual is apprehended and charged with vehicular manslaughter by the St. Charles, Missouri prosecuting attorneys office. This kind of aggressive and downright foolish road rage resulted in the death of a mother and daughter.

As soon as additional information becomes available, we will post that information.

Seventy-three year old Herbert Edwards, from St. Louis, Missouri, was killed Wednesday in a car accident when a school bus hit the Nissan he was operating broadside near the intersection of Cass and Jefferson Avenue.

None of the children nor the bus driver suffered personal injury, but were taken to local hospitals to be checked out.

At this time, the Missouri Highway Patrol has not released its report on this St. Louis car accident.

Jennifer Walker and four other family members from Eldon, Missouri suffered personal injury in a Missouri truck accident in Cole County, Missouri today when a 1978 International dump truck operated by 72 year old Jerome Kampeter of Jefferson City, Missouri pulled out in front of Ms. Walker's 2003 Mazda on Highway 54.

According to the Missouri Highway Patrol, Ms. Walker was eastbound on Highway 54 near the Honey Creek intersection when Mr. Kampeter attempted to cross the highway. When the International dump truck was within the intersection, Ms. Walker's car slammed into the side of the truck. After the car accident, Jennifer, Alexis, Christopher, John and Steven were transported to St. Mary's Health Center in Jefferson City, Missouri.

The incident report indicates the Mazda was completely totaled in the wreck while the dump truck sustained only moderate damage. The dump truck was insured by a company called Winter-Dent Insurance Agency, a local insurance broker with offices in Jefferson City and Columbia.

Commercial motor carriers are required by law to carry at least $750,000 dollars of liability insurance per incident, as opposed to the $25,000 dollars required for ordinary motorists. Recently, our law firm handled a case like this. The attorney argued in that case the truck driver was not operating interstate and was therefore not required to comply with the federal motor carrier reguations. At first glance, this may seem like a persuasive argument, but it is wrong.

Missouri has specifically adopted the Federal Motor Carrier Regulations in Chapter 390, RSMo. Because of this, it does not matter whether the trip was interstate or intrastate- the same rules apply.

In this particular Missouri truck accident, Ms. Walker was insured by Progressive insurance company. It is unknown what levels of insurance were carried. It is possible for Ms. Walker to recover medical payment coverage under this policy if she opted to include this coverage in her policy. In addition, she may have opted for underinsured coverage, which may be applicable in this case, although this is unlikely.

In every case, insurance coverage will need to be determined. This is a very tricky area of the law- especially with truck accidents. Additional federal regulations and recent federal court decisions have expanded the scope of MCS-90 endorsements for trucks, which may afford injured parties substantially more insurance than they might at first think. Since the law in this area is relatively new, many district courts throughout the United States disagree on how MCS-90 endorsements and insurance coverage should play out in cases like this. It is possible the same crash in one area of the country may result in a great amount of insurance coverage while the same crash in another part of the country would result in a small recovery. When district courts differ in how to reach a conculsion based upon the same set of facts, attorneys refer to this as a "circuit split." Usually, circuit splits are decided by the Supreme Court, but since the Supreme Court only takes certain cases to hear, it may be a while before the uncertainty in this area of trucking is finally decided once and for all.

If you have questions about MCS-90 endorsement or how the federal motor carrier regulations apply to a particular incident, feel free to contact our Cole County, Missouri personal injury lawyers to discuss your particular legal issue.

Kenneth Snyder, 31 of St. Charles, Missouri was injured in a car accident on I-70 when a pickup driven by Shareko Howard, of Wentzville, Missouri hit Mr. Snyder's vehicle from behind on December 4, 2007. Mr. Snyder's car was slammed into the rear of a tractor trailer driven by Danny Persons of House Springs, Missouri.

Mr. Snyder was transported to St. Joseph Hospital east by the Pattonville, Missouri Ambulance district, where he was treated for moderate personal injuries. Mr. Persons was able to stop his tractor trailer without incident and was not injured. It is unknown whether Mr. Howard suffered personal injuries.

The Bradley Law Firm, a St. Louis Missouri personal injury law firm, helps those injured in Missouri car accidents by meeting with them for free, regardless of whether that person employs their services. If you have been involved in a car accident in Missouri and need to ask an experienced personal injury lawyer a question, feel free to contact us.

Jeffrey McBride, a 37 year old MODOT employee from Arcadia, Missouri was tragically killed Friday in a freak accident involving a piece of machinery. According to witnesses, Mr. McBride's clothing got caught in the drive shaft of a salt spreading machine that was affixed to a MODOT dump truck. This incident occurred at a service lot near Highway 55 and MM near Barnhart, Missouri.

Mr. McBride was transported to St. Anthony's Hospital, where he was pronounced dead from his personal injuries.

In this tragic incident, Mr. McBride's family will be able to file a claim for workers compensation since he was a Missouri worker. In addition, the Missouri personal injury lawyer that helps this family should take a close look at this salt spreading device. I have handled many wrongful death claims involving product liability and this incident is very suspect. Any drive shaft or shaft that turns should have a protective shield to protect people. It is unknown whether this particular device had a protective shield or adequate warnings to warn of this danger.

In Missouri, manufacturers of products that are defective in terms of lack of warning or safety devices are held strictly liable for any and all damage their defective product causes, including personal injury or wrongful death. Strict liability means the claimant does not have to prove fault or negligence. The claimant must only prove that the incident happened and the manufacturer was responsible.

Product liability is a very complex area of law and is only handled by a very few lawyers in the St. Louis area.

Alexandra Douglas and her passenger Denisha Davis, were in a tractor trailer accident on the on December 5, 2007. This St. Louis tractor trailer crash happened between Missouri and Illinois on the Poplar Street Bridge. As a St. Louis Missouri personal injury lawyer, since the St. Louis police department investigated this truck crash, it seems to me the accident happened on the Missouri side of the state line. As such, any attorney that files a personal injury lawsuit will do so in the City of St. Louis.

The tractor trailer that hit Ms. Douglas and Ms. Davis was operated by Raymond Parks of Oklahoma. He was operating a Schneider 2007 Freightliner tractor trailer. According to the truck driver, Ms. Douglas stopped in front of her and he was not able to react in time to stop. Ms. Davis indicated traffic did not "suddenly stop" and simply began to slow. As she slowed her vehicle, she was hit from behind by the truck. At that time, Ms. Douglas' vehicle was slammed into the vehicle in front of her.

After this Missouri car accident, Ms. Douglas and Ms. Davis were transported to an unknown hospital by Abbott Ambulance Service. The extent of their respective injuries is unknown.

Missouri law imputes liability to the truck driver in this trucking accident. Whenever someone hits another vehicle from behind, there is a presumption of negligence. That means, the court will presume the truck driver was negligent and it will be upon him to explain why he was not negligent.

If you or someone you know has been involved in an Illinois or Missouri truck accident, please contact us for a free evaluation of your personal injury claim.

Beverly McMasters, 52, of Marshfield, Missouri was involved in a minor Missouri car accident on December 3, 2007 on Highway 160 approximately half a mile west of Walnut Shade Road. After Ms. McMasters got out of her vehicle, Jack Ford of Springfield, Missouri stopped and sat inside his car patiently waiting for Ms. McMasters. All of a sudden, another car driven by Velma Barges hit Mr. Ford's vehicle, causing him to hit Ms. McMasters while she was outside her vehicle.

After being hit by the car, Ms. McMasters was transported to St. John's Hospital in Springfield, Missouri and was listed as having serious personal injuries.

If you are involved in a car accident in Missouri, the first thing you should do is get to a place of safety. Often, motorists find themselves stranded in the middle of the road or on the shoulder. Accident victims should always stand away from the roadway after a car wreck. As a lawyer, I often see people that suffer personal injury from being struck while in the roadway after a traffic accident. As always, think SAFETY, even after you are involved in a Missouri car accident and make sure you are not in danger's way. After the car accident, call a Missouri personal injury lawyer to discuss your legal rights.

St. Louis Missouri personal injury lawyer Ryan Bradley recently settled a car accident lawsuit for his client, Marsleen Kerr. Ms. Kerr was in a car operated by her husband when another vehicle pulled out in front of them, causing a car wreck in rural Missouri. Marsleen had severe facial lacerations. Here is a picture of the lacerations she sustained to her face.

Under the threat of a lawsuit, the insurance company for the at fault driver, State Farm, immediately paid the maximum policy limits of insurance, which were $100,000.