A case involving a woman hurt in a crash on U.S. 20 in 2018 was settled for $1 million.
On January 15, 2018, the 75-year-old woman was driving on U.S. 20 in Erin Township, IL. A 16-year-old girl was traveling in the opposite direction when she lost control of her car while driving through an icy curve, crossed the center line and crashed into the other woman’s car.
The woman suffered two fractured wrists, a fractured femur, a fractured ankle and a shattered heel bone. A Stephenson County deputy sheriff who investigated the crash noted that it had snowed prior to the accident and that the roads were ”icy, slushy and slick.”
Blake Vance of the law firm Coplan + Crane, which represented the injured woman, said the 16-year-old driver was solely responsible for causing the accident.
“Liability was never an issue in this case,” said Vance. “While the roads were slippery that day, drivers have a responsibility to adapt to road conditions. The other driver was driving too fast and did not take proper actions to avoid a collision.”
He said there were also witnesses to the crash.
Vance said our client required surgery and will likely require additional procedures and physical therapy. He noted her medical bills amounted to more than $459,000.
