Personal Injury Law

Rear-end collision injures Missouri family

By Ryan Bradley, Esq.

Five people were hospitalized, three under the age of 13, after a Missouri rear-end collision on Highway 39 in Stockton.

The events leading to this serious injury accident began with Eric Luff, 49, bringing the 1997 Honda Accord he was driving to a stop in order to make a left turn. According to the investigating trooper with the Missouri State Highway Patrol, a second vehicle, a 2001 Ford Focus driven by Wade Thornton, 37, was following behind Luff. Thornton failed to see Luff's vehicle and slammed into the back end of the Accord causing extensive damage.

Luff and an adult passenger, Carrie Messick, 32, were both seriously injured and flown to St. John's Hospital for emergency treatment. The three children in Luff's car, Harmon Messick, 3; Londen Messick, 6; and Tanner Messick, 12; all sustained moderate injuries and were taken to CMH Hospital for treatment. Thornton was not listed on the injury report.

Fortunately, all those involved were wearing a seatbelt, or this crash could have been much worse. Hopefully everyone can make a full recovery.

In the majority of rear-end collision cases, negligence is assumed for the at-fault driver since everyone should be in control of where their vehicle is heading at all times. There are some rare exceptions, however, and there may be details not listed on the initial report that shed more light on this accident.

Full post as published by Missouri Accident Lawyer Blog on October 21, 2010 (boomark / email).