A Texas family recently filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Acme Truck Line Inc. which accuses the company of negligence by not performing a proper background check on one of their truck drivers.

According to the lawsuit, a woman related to the family was killed in an accident with an Acme 18-wheeler truck in December 2010.  The accident occurred on U.S. Highway 190 when the truck driver swerved into the left lanes in order to prepare for a right turn and blocked all of the highway’s northbound lanes.

The victim of the accident was traveling in a vehicle behind the truck.  When the truck moved into the left lanes, the woman attempted to avoid colliding with the 18-wheeler, but was unable and crashed into the back of it.

The truck company is accused of not evaluating the truck driver’s experience and abilities, not performing a proper background check or criminal history check on the driver, and not tracking the driver’s operation of their 18-wheelers. For more information on truck accidents and the legal effects they can have, please visit our personal injury blog.

Recently, a mother filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the maker of the caffeinated, alcoholic beverage, Four Loko.  The drink’s maker, Phusion Projects, is accused of negligence in creating a product which increases the risk of “alcohol-related harm.”

According to the lawsuit, the mother’s 15-year old son died after drinking two cans of Four Loko.  The teen obtained the alcoholic beverages at a convenience store before attending a concert in September 2010.  At the concert, officials called his parents to pick him up because he was acting erratically.

The boy’s mother picked him up to drive him home from the concert.  On the drive home, the teen jumped out of the vehicle and ran away.  He was struck by another vehicle on the highway and killed.

After a tragic accident at Sky Ranch last month, the family of Matthias Berhanu is filing a wrongful death lawsuit against the outdoor learning facility and summer camp.  Sky Ranch is located in Van, Texas northwest of Tyler and has around 93-acres of forest property.

Berhanu was visiting the ranch on a sixth-grade class field trip with Springridge Elementary, out of Richardson, when a tragic accident on the property occurred.  A tree at the ranch fell and struck the 12-year old while he was sitting on a bench.  Berhanu suffered serious injuries and passed away two days later at Children’s Medical Center in Dallas.

Berhanu’s parents filed that lawsuit claiming that Sky Ranch was negligent in not maintaining their property so that it is safe for patrons and visitors.

Our utmost sympathies go out to Matthias’ family and friends during this difficult time.

The family of a 25-year old man that was shot and killed by an undercover Plano police officer is suing the Plano Police Department for wrongful death.  Michael Anthony Acala was shot during a narcotics investigation outside of a Jack in the Box off of the Dallas North Tollway and Frankford Road in October.

The lawsuit claims that the Plano Police Department’s use of .40-caliber semi-automatic handgun with an attached Sure Fire X300 flashlight is dangerous.  The problem with having the flashlights mounted on guns means officers could accidentally fire the weapons when trying to turn on the flashlight.  The undercover officer that shot Acala admits that it was a mistake and he did not intend to shoot him.

Last month, $750,000 was awarded to the family of an 18-year old man who was wrongfully killed by an Austin Police Department officer.

Nathaniel Sanders’ family filed suit against the city after their son was shot and killed at the Walnut Creek Apartments in East Austin in 2009.  Sanders and two friends were sleeping in a car when they were approached by Austin police officer Lenny Quintana.  Sanders and his friends awoke to Quintana trying to arrest them.  Quintana then thought he saw Sanders grabbing for a gun on his waistband and reacted by shooting him.

Keypoint Government Solutions investigated the tragic incident and stated that Quintana had used excessive and unnecessary deadly force.  Quintana was not billed for his role in the shooting, but was suspended for not having his dashcam recorder on at the time.  He was later released from his position for a DUI arrest.

A Midland family is suing a driver and the company he works for after he was involved in a fatal car accident that killed 47-year olds Marina Lisa Robles and Joe Luis Ramon on June 21st.

The accident occurred when Justin Paul Pruett was driving an A-1 Fire and Safety Equiment Company truck on Business 20 near Center Avenue and collided head-on with Robles’ vehicle.

Robles’ family has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Pruett arguing that he has “a history of alcohol and/or drug offenses”.  However, the defense has stated that Pruett only has one Class B misdemeanor for possession of marijuana on his record from 1998.  Furthermore, the family included A-1 Fire and Safety Equipment in the suit for hiring and entrusting Pruett to operate a company vehicle.

Our utmost sympathies go out to Robles’ and Ramon’s family and friends.