Ohio trucker accused of texting before fatal 18-wheeler crash | Kisling, Nestico & Redick
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KNR Legal
Date posted
 
May 31, 2015
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If you drive southwest from Akron on I-71 S and I-70 W for about three hours, you will find yourself in the village of Verona. You might not even notice it a bit west of Dayton. The population is just 494 and they measure the size of the village in acres rather than miles.

Early this year, on a January morning, the quiet of the tiny hamlet was shattered when a tractor-trailer heading north sideswiped an unoccupied vehicle parked alongside the interstate and then crossed the median into the southbound lanes where it slammed into two vehicles. A 45-year-old man driving one of the vehicles died at the scene of the truck crash. A 64-year-old woman in the other vehicle was hospitalized with serious injuries.

After the violent collisions, the 33-year-old truck driver, of Rossburg, Ohio, deleted text messages he had sent around the time of the 9:30 a.m. crashes. According to a newspaper report, the man was recently indicted on a dozen charges related to the collisions and apparent attempt at deception: second-degree manslaughter, second-degree assault, tampering with evidence and four counts of first-degree felony criminal mischief.

Investigators say he falsified his log book and that though he deleted texts, they were able to recover them from his phone to show he was texting while behind the wheel of his big rig.

In similar situations, the family that lost a loved one will speak with an Ohio attorney experienced in vigorous pursuit of wrongful death litigation. In some cases, that will involve claims against both the driver and his employer.

Similar claims might be filed against driver and insurer by the accident injury victim seeking compensation for medical expenses, lost income and pain and suffering, among other possible damages.