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Outside O’Fallon, Illinois last Friday an Illinois State Trooper lost control of his squad car and collided head on with another vehicle on Interstate 64. Two witnesses have stated that before the auto accident the police car was traveling at an excessive rate of speed without its siren on, according to the Belleville News Democrat. The motor vehicle accident killed two sisters, Jessica Uhl, 18, and Kelli Uhl, 13 of Collinsville, Illinois.

One witness stated the trooper passed by her before the accident traveling at more than 100 mph. A few seconds later the trooper crossed the median and slammed into a Mazda driven by Jessica Uhl. Illinois State Police Officials stated the officer was responding to another accident on Illinois 4 when he was cut off by another car and forced onto the grassy median.

Illinois State Police are still investigating the car crash and reviewing video taken from the State Police Car.

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In the Chicago area suburb of Geneva, Illinois a pedestrian has been struck by a Metra train on the Union Pacific West Line railroad tracks around 5:30 p.m., according to the Daily Herald. The pedestrian, who has not been identified, died in the train accident. The occurrence took place near the Fox River. The Geneva Police and Fire Departments were on the scene, but there has not been any indication yet as to what caused the accident.

The Federal Railroad Administration reports that train related accidents in Illinois declined in 2006, but statistics for 2007 are not yet available.

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Injury lawyers that filed a wrongful death lawsuit on behalf of the family of former Chicago Blackhawk defenseman Keith Magnuson have moved forward to trial, according to CBC Sports. The lawsuit is pending in St. Louis County, Missouri Circuit Court. The defendant in the case, Rob Ramage, played defense for the Toronto Maple Leafs for several years.

The case stems from a 2003 car crash where Ramage allegedly collided with 2 other cars. He was recently found guilty of various forms of DUI charges in criminal court and is scheduled to be sentenced in January, 2008. Ramage himself underwent hip surgery as a result of the motor vehicle collision. Maguson was pronounced dead at the scene.

Magnuson played in the NHL from 1969-1979, and all of his 589 career games were with the Chicago Blackhawks. He went to the Stanley Cup twice with the Hawks in 1971 and 1973, both times losing to the Montreal Canadiens. He was also captain of the Blackhawks for several years.

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A Chicago area resident has died in a bus accident in Arkansas. He was traveling to visit his mother when a bus he was a passenger on collided with a pickup truck and an 18 wheeler, according to Chicago SunTimes.com. Raul Lopez, 58, was on a Tornado Bus Co. bus that was traveling from Chicago, Illinois to Dallas, Texas. He was 1 of 47 people on the bus.

The motor vehicle collision happened in the rain on Interstate 40 in northern Arkansas around 10 pm on Sunday night when the bus crossed a median, hit the pickup, and then hit the larger truck. Lopez, another passenger, and the driver of the pickup truck died in the crash. Arkansas State Police are still investigating the crash, which seriously injured several more people.

Lopez was a father of 4, grandfather of 5, and worked in manufacturing. His mother lives in Mexico, and he usually drove there, but no one was available to make the trip with him. Lopez thought his vision was not good enough to drive at night, so he took the bus.

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Chicago Personal Injury Lawyers from Abels & Assoc. just settled a workers’ compensation case for a Chicago resident who was injured when a forklift rolled over and lacerated his right foot in the course of his employment. He has fully recovered and the case has been settled for just over $18,000. The settlement has already been approved by the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission.

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A Chicago, Illinois car crash early Thanksgiving morning resulted in the death of 2 people, and the off duty Chicago police officer that caused the collision has been charged with DUI, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. As of Saturday, the families of the deceased have already hired a Chicago wrongful death lawyer to represent them. The motor vehicle collision occurred in the 2900 block of North Damen when the officer who was traveling northbound in his SUV crossed the center line and struck a southbound Pontiac.

The two men that were killed were ages 22 and 21, and they were life long friends from Cicero, Illinois. The officer, age 33, is assigned to the Belmont district, and is being relieved of his duties from the Chicago Police Department. He is scheduled to appear in traffic court in January, 2008. The charges could be upgraded, and that decision will be made by the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office.

This is the second time this week that an off duty Chicago Police Officer has been charged with driving under the influence of alcohol as related to fatal motor vehicle accidents.

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In Chicago, Illinois personal injury attorneys from David Abels & Associates, P.C., working with the Lake County firm of Trobe & Babowice reached a premises liability settlement for $275,000 with the Chicago Housing Authority (CHA). The plaintiff, a minor, was riding in a stroller and was pushed by another child into a negligently designed lock box that was on the door of a vacant CHA apartment. The actual lock box at issure is pictured below. The child sustained severe eye injuries. The building was being managed by an agent of the CHA, William Green Homes at the time of the occurrence. The lock box was defective in design in that it was a large metal box that protruded approximately 8 inches from the door into the hall. Most lock boxes are much smaller and flush against a door. The lock was especially dangerous in a CHA building where kids play in the hallways.

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A Chicago police officer involved in a fatal motorcycle accident in June, 2007 has been charged with misdemeanor DUI, according to the Chicago Tribune. A passenger on his motorcycle was killed in the accident. The officer was off duty at the time of the crash and allegedly had a blood alcohol content of .24 (.08 is the legal limit in Illinois).

The motorcucle crash occured in the 4300 block of W. 87th Street in Chicago, Illinois when a eastbound Dodge Charger turned left into the westbound motorcycle. The driver of the Dodge was also charged with DUI.

The Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office reportedly just learned of the officer’s high alcohol content this week, and the Chicago Police Department spokeperson could not say why the officer’s alcohol results were not released for over 5 months. The spokesperson also said that it was the other vehicle who caused the accident.

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Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich has announced on his website that, with the hope of reducing car crash fatalities and personal injury accidents, IDOT, the Illinois State Police, and other local police departments will be cracking down on drivers who do not buckle up this holiday weekend. Police are to take a zero tolerance approach when issuing tickets during this upcoming “Click It or Ticket” campaign.

Law enforcement agencies will be setting up seat belt check points in various parts of the state. The State Police will run over 2,100 details focusing on seat belts, speeding, DUI, and underage drinking in an attempt to reduce deaths and injury accidents. The Governor’s Office reports that “in 2006, 17 fatal crashes resulting in 20 fatalities occurred during the five day Thanksgiving holiday weekend.”

Over the past several weeks in the Chicago area alone, failure to wear seat belts has been a factor in several serious injury auto accidents.Click here to read entire story.

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In Chicago, Illinois 2 police officers were injured in a hit and run auto accident on Monday night. The Chicago Police Officers were out of the Harrison District and the accident occurred at 800 S. Sacramento Avenue.

The officers were trying to stop a car in a drug investigation, and the vehicle ended up hitting the police car and fleeing the scene. One officer suffered a broken arm in the collision. The officers were treated and released from Northwestern Memorial Hospital.

Most individuals involved in this type of case could potentially have a workers’ compensation claim because they were injured on the job, and a hit and run claim to make with there own insurance company. However, here the injured persons are Chicago police officers and there claims are covered by union contract, not workers’ compensation or or uninsured motorist coverage. Potentially, if the hit and run driver is ever caught, they could have a civil injury claim against the at fault driver.Click here for entire story.

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