Passenger dies when teen driver allegedly causes car accident

Parents in Illinois may not realize the severe consequences of allowing their teenagers to drive their vehicles without a responsible adult in the front seat. There are strict rules of the road that need followed and restrictions related to the number of passengers one may carry. If such a teen is involved in a car accident, the consequences may affect the futures of both the teen and his or her parents.

Peoria police were recently called to the scene of a single-vehicle accident that took the life of a 17-year-old passenger. It was reported that the driver was also 17 years old and that he or she had had seven passengers in the SUV. Because of the driver being a juvenile, no details about the circumstances of the accident were published. However, it was stated that the SUV had crashed and rolled over.

Six passengers were transported to a local hospital while a seventh passenger died at the accident scene. The driver was cited for reckless driving, failure to reduce speed, and failure to properly use traffic lanes. In addition, the driver received a ticket for exceeding the passenger limit. The case was being reviewed by Peoria prosecutors at the time of the media report.

The parents of the young Illinois girl who lost her life in this fatal car accident may want to pursue the recovery of damages incurred. They retain the right to file a wrongful death claim against the driver and his or her parents or another party who may be the owner of the SUV. The injured passengers are also entitled to pursue compensation by filing personal injury claims in a civil court. If successful, the court may award monetary damages to cover medical expenses, end-of-life expenses and any additional compensation allowed by state laws for other losses suffered.

Source: greenfieldreporter.com, “Police ticket teenage driver involved in Peoria crash that killed girl”, Dec. 24, 2014