Missouri Accident Lawyer Blog

Five people were hospitalized Friday afternoon after a four-car accident on U.S. 65 in Dallas County.

The accident occurred when Joseph Ritsch, 70, stopped his 2007 Ford Focus to make a left turn onto Route TT about 12 miles south of Buffalo, Missouri. According to the Missouri Highway Patrol, two other vehicles stopped safely behind Ritsch before a 2000 Ford Pickup, driven by Jeremy Kelso, 28, failed to stop and struck the line of cars.

The impact caused a chain reaction forcing each car to collide with the next one in line. Three of the four vehicles were totaled by the crash.

All of the injuries were sustained by passengers riding in the two middle cars. Becky Owens, 28; Connor McConnell, 10; and Khristian Sommerfeld, 3, were riding in a 2000 Dodge Intrepid directly behind Ritsch’s car. Tim Ewing, 42, and Doug Kinsey, 56, were riding in a 1997 Chevrolet Pickup that was the first to be struck by Kelso’s vehicle.

Owens and Kinsey suffered serious injuries while McConnell, Sommerfeld, and Ewing’s injuries were listed as moderate to minor by the investigating officer. Neither Ritsch nor Kelso was injured, according to accident report. All of the injured were taken to St. John’s Hospital in Springfield.

Accident’s involving multiple vehicles can be very complicated to handle from a personal injury attorney’s perspective. Fault may be harder to establish and, under Missouri’s comparative fault system, liability for damages may be placed on multiple drivers.

Often, in cases were a line of cars has a chain reaction-type crash, each driver is considered responsible for the damages their vehicle causes to the one directly in front of them. This is because drivers are expected to keep a safe distance between them and any cars in front of them. Many other factors, such as the speed Kelso was traveling, must first be examined in the Dallas County crash before fault is assigned.