Illinois Personal Injury Lawyer Blog

Amanda Jahn, 27 and her children Ryan 3 and Kaitlyn, 11 months were killed on Thursday night by a drunk driver, according to police.

Jahn was traveling south on Illinois Highway 47 near Morris, when Ann Marie Getz, 43, was driving west on Garder Rd. Getz ran a stop sign, crashing into Jahns' vehicle.

Getz of Streator, Illinois has been charged with three counts of aggravated DUI. A judge ordered her held in lieu of $1 million bail. A background check on Getz revealed that she has had prior criminal charges including alcohol related violations. Grundy County Sheriff Tery Marketti declined to provide details about Getz' prior record.

"This was so senseless." Marketti said. "The [driver] shouldn't have been behind the wheel. She wiped out an entire family."

Getz, who was taken to Morris Hospital with non-life threatening injuries will be released next week. Upon her release she will immediately be taken to jail.

Amanda Jahn was pronounced dead at the accident scene. She was trapped inside her vehicle. Her two children were both thrown from the car. They were in car seats. The impact of the accident sent Jahn's car spinning into a nearbar cornfield.

Jahn's husband was notified of the accident. Markettis says he is "devastated." Ryan and Kailtyn were the couple's only children.

"This certainly isn't an easy situation for us to handle-we all have children too," Marketti said. "It hits home when you're dealing with the deaths of two small children."

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Marcel Martinez-Ayala, 28 of Carpentersville, was killed early Saturday morning riding in a car that crashed into a house in Elgin, Illinois.

Ayala, was pronounced dead at Sherman Hospital in Elgin. He was a front seat passenger. The driver of the car was also taken to Sherman Hospital with non-life threatening injuries according to Elgin police.

Police arrived at the accident scene shortly before 1:30 a.m. Police said a 1993 Nissan Altima was driving westbound on Chicago street, when it jumped the curb and struck the house located at 636 E. Chicago and stopped outside the residence at 622 E. Chicago.

The porch on the front of the house was damaged in the crash and the house was deemed uninhabitable. No one was home at the time of the crash.

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After investigating an accident that resulted in the death of three people 25 years ago, DuPage County and Villa Park authorities finally had enough evidence to issue an arrest warrant for Roger Walburg, 51 of Oklahoma City.

On June 6, 1980 Walburg was the driver of a car that went through a railroad crossing resulting in a car-train cash that killed his 3 passengers. Walburg fled 25 years ago and was living under the alias Jason Bowling.

Walburg appeared in DuPage Court on Friday after waiving extradition. Bail was set at $1 million for violation of his bond. Walburg was charged with reckless homicide in the 1980 crash.

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A Herscher High School Student was identified by Kankakee County Coroner Bob Gessner as the driver killed in a three car collision early Thursday on Illinois Route 17.

Ian Michael Bogusch,18, son of John and Brenda Bogusch of Kankakee was pronounced dead at Riverside Medical Center’s Emergency room shortly after the accident. A 16 year old passenger was also in the car, but was not identified. He was in fair condition at Riverside. Gessner noted that the boys are brothers.

Both teens were wearing seatbelts and there were no traffic miscues that caused the accident.
Bogusch was westbound on Illinois 17 when he was read-ended by a pick-up truck being driven by Michael L. Labit, 31 of Kankakee. Labit was not injured according to police.

Bogusch’s van was forced into oncoming traffic and was struck by a car driven by 80 year old Evelyn Hanlin of Campus.

Hanlin was taken to Riverside Medical Center for treatment. Her condition was not known as of Thursday afternoon

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On January 4, 2008, the victim, was driving westbound on Joe Orr Rd., when the defendant driver crossed the center line and struck the victim head on. Police were called to the scene of the accident and the defendant driver was issued a ticket for causing the accident and failing to reduce speed.

The victim experienced an immediate onset of neck pain, but did not seek treatment for several weeks. Subsequently, the victim was diagnosed with a cervical herniated disk. The victim underwent physical therapy as prescribed by his doctor. The victim’s medical bills totaled $18,000.

Upon completion of the victim’s treatment the Law Offices of Donald W. Fohrman & Associates, Ltd., attempted to settle the case with the insurance company. The initial offer on the case was $23,000. The entire policy of $100,000 the at fault driver was demanded. Because the insurance company refused to increase their offer both parties agreed to arbitrate the case with a retired judge to avoid years of litigation.

After presenting the case to the arbitrator, Donald W. Fohrman & Associates, Ltd., was able to secure a result of $75,000.00 for the victim. We tripled the insurance company offer and the case was resolved within nine months of the accident.

It is not uncommon for insurance companies to offer the lowest compensation possible. The adjuster has an obligation to the insurance company to pay out as little as possible on a claim. However, only an experienced attorney can best determine the true value of a claim.

If you have been injured in an auto accident, contact the Law Offices of Donald W. Fohrman & Associates, Ltd., at 800-437-2571 and speak with experienced personal injuryattorney.

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On Wednesday, the Chicago City Council passed a proposed ban on texting while driving. The final vote is scheduled for the Oct 8, city council meeting. If approved, the ordinance will take effect later this month.

Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White spoke in favor of the ban and said he is pushing a statewide ban on texting while driving. “I believe that when you are texting you have your eyes off the wheel, you’re concerned about your sentence structure, you’re concerned about your spelling and at the same time you have to maintain master of the wheel,” White told the Chicago City Council. “We don’t believe you can do all those things and yet get from point A to point B in a safe and responsible manner.”

The proposal was sponsored by Ald. Edward Burke who also raised the possibility of banning reading or applying eye-make-up while driving

To read the complete article click here

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On Friday Sept. 26, Dennis Hernandez, a truck driver for Bret Michaels’ Rock of Love reality show, was driving a truck full of equipment West through Frankfurt Illinois when he allegedly fell asleep at the wheel. Hernandez lost control of the of the truck and crashed into a sports utility vehicle and pick-up truck. Two women were killed and two other people are in serious condition.

Out of respect for the accident victims, Michaels has requested that filming of the reality show be suspended. “ Bret Michaels has requested that his participation in the production of the series be temporarily suspended as he attempts to reach out to the families of the victims. Traveling separately, Mr. Michaels had left Illinois early Friday morning and was not near the scene of the accident,” said a spokesperson from US TV channel VH1.

Michaels adds, “As a father of two, I cannot even imagine what the families must be going through at this time. I will make every attempt to reach out to them to let them know that my heart and prayers are with them during their grief.”

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A Granite City man died as a result of his injuries sustained in a car accident last night at the intersection of Illinois 3 and Rock Road.

The driver of the car that crashed, Brian M. Withers, 44, of Granite City, died from a blunt head trauma injury.

A deputy from the Madison County Cororner’s office pronounced Mr. Withers dead at the scene of the car accident at 6:15p.m. At the time of the accident he was driving 1998 Ford Mustang headed south on Illinois 3.

He was approaching Rock Road. When he was preparing to turn right, he collided with Joseph Cangelosi 30, of Jerseyville who was driving a 2004 GMC Sierra pickup. Wither’s car hit the front of a tractor trailer which was stopped at the light on Rock Road.

Cangelosi suffered minor injuries.

The Madison County police has determined that, based on the indications at the scene of the accident, that Mr. Withers had been at fault.

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A Carrollton teen is in serious condition in a car crash with a cow in Greene County according to Illinois State Police.

The teen -- Cayla M. Davis, 17 -- was taken by ambulance to Boyd Memorial Hospital. The car crash took place on Wednesday, Oct. 1, at 7:43 p.m. Davis is in serious condition, police said.

Illinois State Police report that Davis was driving south on Highway 67 about three miles north of Carrollton an oncoming car flashed its headlights. Davis she slowed down to about 35 mph. After reducing her speed she it hit something in the road, police said.

The cow found its way onto Highway 67. The cow was removed before police could get to the accident. The owner of the cow has not been found.

Davis was wearing her seatbelt.

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An Arlington Heights man was killed by a Jeep on Saturday night as he walked across a busy commercial strip near his home.

At about 8:20 pm Arthur Tidd, 86 was walking across Algonquin Road when he was struck by a westbound 2000 Jeep Wrangler driven by a 32 year old Schaumburg man. Commander Michael Miljan said Mr. Tidd was hit just east of Marketplace Drive, an access road into the Rolling Meadows Wal-Mart. There is no pedestrian crosswalk there.

Arlington Heights police are looking for witnesses to the accident. The driver of the vehicle that hit Mr. Tidd, stopped after the crash. No citations were issued.

Mr. Tidd was taken by ambulance to Northwest Community Hospital in Arlington Heights where he was pronounced dead shortly afterwards.

An expert in accident reconstruction has been assigned to investigate the accident. Cmdr. Miljan states there are no indications that drugs or alcohol played a part in the accident.

Police are asking anyone who was the accident to call 847-368-5300.

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