If a deceased relative perishes in an automobile accident because of perceived negligence on the part of the state, residents in Kansas City can turn to an experienced car accident attorney to help the deceased person's estate file a survival action suit to recover damages from the negligent parties.
This issue surfaced in Kansas City news recently as a civil suit filed in late 2010 by plaintiff Ashlie Jack, the administrator of deceased minor Bayleigh Stovall's estate, against the city of El Dorado, Kansas and the Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) is reported to go to trial as early as this spring.
According to court documents, on a rainy night in March 2009, the 15-year-old Stovall attempted to wait out the storm by pulling into what she thought was a driveway adjacent to North Main Street in El Dorado. However, Stovall unwittingly was turning into a water canal beneath North Main Street that funneled her car directly towards a boxed culvert.
Stovall reportedly was unable to drive her car in reverse out of the canal, and with no safeguards present, Stovall's car was trapped within the culvert, filling her car with water and ultimately leading her to drown.
In response, court documents state that Jack is suing the city of El Dorado and KDOT for Stovall's wrongful death, alleging the defendants failed to adequately warn against a non-evident hazard and neglected to maintain proper safety conditions on the road as no rails, barricades or grates protected vehicles from driving into the canal or the culvert.
Jack is seeking a settlement of $75,000 to recoup damages, loss of future income, extreme pain and suffering and medical expenses.
While such tragedy yields profound grief and bereavement, this case indicates that experienced civil lawyers can help the family recoup damages from at-fault parties even after the injured or damaged person has passed away.