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The Elman Joseph Law Group won a $209,000 settlement for a Will County motorcycle accident injury case. The plaintiff was Javier Cotto and the defendant was Joan Eklund. [Name of case; Javier Cotto vs. Joan Eklund, 19 L 51 (Will County, IL); Name of (lead) lawyer: Anthony R. Elman with co-counsel attorneys, Lerner and Rowe]

The underlying motorcycle accident occurred in Crest Hill, Illinois on December 16, 2017. On that date, a motorcyclist, Javier Cotto, 34, was riding his Suzuki motorcycle eastbound along Theodore Street. At the intersection of Theodore Street and Rock Run Drive, Cotto alleges that a westbound Toyota Camry driven by Joan Eklund was attempting to make a left-hand turn and failed to yield the right-of-way, and the Camry collided with Cotto’s motorcycle.

Joan Eklund filed many affirmative defenses against Javier Cotto, alleging that he failed to keep a proper lookout; failed to keep his motorcycle in proper lane of travel; operated his motorcycle too fast for conditions; failed to yield the right of way to defendant’s vehicle; disobeyed a traffic signal; failed to activate the horn; and failed to avoid impact.

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Bicycle “dooring accidents” have been extensively discussed on this site.  For those unaware, this type of bicycle crash happens when a driver who is parallel parked opens the car door as a bicyclist is approaching the car from the rear.  The bicyclist runs into the opened car door as the bike is passing the car.  As the bicyclist is typically riding at speed, the collision with the opened door – a fixed object – is usually highly traumatic.  The bicyclist can be seriously injured, and there are a wide range of injuries that can occur.  In a limited number of cases the injuries have led to the death of the bicycle rider.

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Crosswalks are supposed to provide pedestrians a way to safely cross the street.  Lawful use of the crosswalk should provide safe passage for pedestrians, as well as provide motorists guidance as to how to interact with walkers attempting to cross the street.

However, crosswalk pedestrian accidents continue to happen.  Many posts (found in the “Pedestrian Accidents” category) on this site have summarized Chicago-area pedestrian accidents in which a person was hit while lawfully walking in a crosswalk.

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As often discussed on this site, many serious pedestrian accidents have occurred while people were walking in crosswalks or otherwise lawfully walking across intersections.  While crosswalks and traffic control devices are supposed to provide a method of safe passage for walkers, in many instances accidents nonetheless occur.  Unfortunately, many people have been killed in the Chicago area while they were lawfully walking across the street.

There was a fatal Oak Park pedestrian accident Thursday (December 26, 2019) morning.  The pedestrian, identified as Karen Daniel, 62, of Oak Park, died at the accident scene after being hit by a pickup truck.  The accident occurred near the intersection of Pleasant Street and Scoville Avenue.  At the time of the incident, Daniel was walking her dog.

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Bicycle accident injuries range widely in both type and severity.  Due to the physical forces involved, as well as a bicycle’s lack of structural protection, cyclists are often seriously injured when hit by a vehicle.  As seen in many Chicago-area accidents, some cyclists are fatally injured during a crash.

On this site, types of bicycle accidents are discussed on the “Chicago Bicycle Accidents” page.   Reasons that bicycle accidents occur, and the associated injuries, are discussed on the “Chicago Bicycle Accident Injuries” page.

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Drug-impaired driving has been increasing in frequency.  Some statistics indicate that incidents of such “drugged driving” may now equal or exceed that of driving while impaired by alcohol.

On this site, accidents causing injury (including deaths) involving drug-impaired driving are summarized in posts found under the “DUI” category.  As seen in those posts, as well as other Chicago-area “drugged driver” accidents, associated accident injuries are often serious in nature and fatalities are common.

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“Hit & Run” accidents continue to occur in the Chicago area.  While there are many reasons as to why a driver may leave the scene of an accident, two main reasons is that they want to avoid the consequences of causing a crash and/or the driver does not want to be charged with driving while impaired by alcohol or drugs.

The December 4, 2019 fatal Orland Park parking lot accident was a “hit & run.” In this accident, two women were hit from behind as they were walking to their cars in a parking lot.  One of the  women was fatally struck, and another woman was injured.  The women were walking to their cars after being at the Square Celt Ale House & Grill at the Orland Square Mall.

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Pedestrian accidents often result in physical trauma to the person hit by the vehicle.  A broad range of injuries can result, varying in severity.

As seen in the Chicago pedestrian accidents discussed on this site, often these pedestrian accidents result in serious accident injuries.  These injuries can be life-threatening in nature, and some result in a fatality either immediately (at the accident scene) or at some later time.

Among common pedestrian accident injuries are broken bones, contusions, chest trauma, soft tissue damage, and various types of brain injuries, including concussions.

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There was a fatal South Side bicycle accident Sunday (November 17, 2019) night.  Details on the accident are somewhat limited.  The cause of the crash does not appear to be publicly disclosed at this time.  The accident is under investigation.

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