We were pleased to hear word of a Cook County verdict in which the family of an accident victim killed after she was struck by a semi-truck in the middle of an Indiana Highway.

A jury awarded $4.25 million dollars to the family of a young woman that was struck and killed by a truck as she stood behind her parked car in the right lane of an Indiana toll way.

Verdicts such as these are certainly welcome reminders that accident victims and/or their families can receive some measure of justice through the court system for their loss. However, the details of the case (as reported by the Cook County Jury Verdict Reporter) also highlighted a disturbing symptom of far too many civil lawsuits these days.

In this trial, the trucking company’s legal team highlighted that the victim did not make a distress call and noted that a copy of the Qur’an allegedly found near the scene of the accident. Therefore, they surmised that the victim was either praying at the time of the accident or was attempting to commit suicide.

Fortunately, the jury did not give very much credence to these arguments, but the lesson should be learned all the same – many defense attorneys will stop at no length to avoid paying for a victim’s injuries, or even in this case, death. This can range from blaming an accident victim even when their car is hit at a complete stop to, as here, trying to play off a tragic death as a suicide attempt.

This unfortunate climate is why choosing legal representation that will stop at nothing to advocate for your rights is so very important.

You can contact us here 24/7/365 (and we really mean that as we will answer our phone) if you have anyquestions and to learn how we may be able to help you in the unfortunate event of an accident that caused you or your family or friends injuries – in particular, you will find that we listen, take your phone calls and e-mails (and even text messages!). We would be honored to help you with your matters – large or small.