The crash occurred close to 8:30PM on Tuesday, October 1st between a semi-truck and a motorcycle, leaving one dead and another victim with grave injuries.
Reports indicate that a semi-truck driven by 73-year-old Lynn Alan Long of Iowa pulled out into the intersection of Country Road 40 and State Road 119 when they should have yielded. A motorcycle headed east on CR40, and which was carrying the two Goshen residents identified as Eli and Erin Schlabach, was not able to avoid the truck and crashed into its trailer.
Erin Schlabach, who was the passenger on the motorcycle, was pronounced dead at the scene. Eli, the driver of the bike, had to be airlifted by Medflight to nearby South Bend Memorial Hospital in critical condition. The driver of the truck was not harmed in the incident.
Jeff Gibson, an experienced attorney and contributor, has offered the following commentary of the legal options available to families after fatal accidents take place:
“When it can be determined that negligence was the reason for the loss of a loved one who could have otherwise enjoyed a fruitful future, it’s simply normal to want to fight for justice on the victim’s behalf. Fortunately, a truck accident lawsuit can help in various ways.
For starters, it allows a family to feel that justice has been served. And secondly, it can also provide full compensation on monetary and non-monetary losses which can include: physical suffering, funeral and burial expenses, medical bills, loss of income, emotional trauma, and loss of companionship.
All the family members of the deceased are generally those who have the possibility of filing a lawsuit after a truck accident. Nevertheless, in some cases, other individuals who were dependent on the deceased victim may also be eligible.
One should not delay in contacting an attorney who has experience handling lawsuits dealing with truck accidents. A lawsuit, which is a completely separate procedure to any kind of criminal proceedings, should be considered early and filed promptly after discussing it with legal representatives.