JG-TC.com > News > Passenger on board bus during fatal accident files lawsuit

TODAY'S HEADLINES

SPECIAL SECTION

ONLINE POLL

ONLINE EXTRAS

Shop Smart, Shop Local

SITE TOOLS

OTHER LINKS

St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Lee Enterprises

Wednesday, November 18, 2009 8:57 PM CST
Passenger on board bus during fatal accident files lawsuit

Staff Report

CHARLESTON — Another lawsuit has been filed related to the accident that resulted in the deaths of two men on a double-decker bus in May.

Michael McKenna, an Eastern Illinois University student, was a passenger on the same bus that Justin Sleezer and Cameron Chana were on when they were fatally injured.

The lawsuit claims the accident caused McKenna to suffer “mental and psychological injuries” that have resulted in physical symptoms, according to court documents filed Tuesday in Coles County Circuit Court.

The accident occurred May 30 when Sleezer and Chana struck their heads on part of the Interstate 57 overpass bridge on Illinois Route 16 while they were riding on the open upper deck of a bus operated by Lincoln Springs Resort.

McKenna’s lawsuit claims negligence on the part of Lincoln Springs; its parent company, Graywood Enterprises; the company owner; and the bus driver for taking an allegedly unsafe route for a tall bus and not educating passengers on safety or monitoring the activities of the passengers on the bus.

Chana and Sleezer died from massive head injuries at Carle Hospital in Urbana within hours of the accident.

In Mattoon police documents, passengers on the upper deck described the trauma after the accident. Some tried to help the victims during the drive to the Sarah Bush Lincoln Health Center emergency room from the accident scene.

Two lawsuits have been filed in Coles County by family members of Chana and Sleezer. They make similar claims on negligence as the cause of the deaths.

Lincoln Springs and Graywood officials previously stated actions by the driver were responsible regarding safety and that the route taken under the overpass bridge was used before without incident.

An attorney for McKenna could not be reached by phone Wednesday afternoon.

Add your comments

*Member ID:
*Password:
Remember login? (requires cookies)
	Forgot Your Password?

Not already registered?
Then click Here.

Comment policy:

JG-TC.com encourages readers to engage in civil conversation with their neighbors. Comments that are submitted are not posted to the site immediately. They go into a queue to be moderated and may take several hours to be reviewed. Comments posted on Saturday may not be reviewed until Sunday afternoon.

In order to keep the page a set width, long lines (mostly long links) will be chopped. Try putting spaces in your links or consider using tinyurl.com to make a smaller link that you can include.

We will never edit or alter your comments, but we do reserve the right to remove comments that violate our code of conduct.

No comment may contain:

* Potentially libelous statements; such as accusing somebody of a crime, defamation of character, or statements that can harm somebody's reputation.
* Obscene, explicit, or racist language.
* Personal attacks, insults, threats, harassment or inciting violence.
* Commercial product promotions.

If you have any questions, please contact our moderator.

Hammbone wrote on Nov 18, 2009 11:41 PM:

" Gee I wonder if I can get on the band wagon too for mental and psychological injuries after reading all this B/S...I havent slept a wink since reading about this accident.Poor poor pittyful me. Give it a rest,The cockroaches are starting to come out of the cracks... "

equestria wrote on Nov 18, 2009 11:58 PM:

" I started to comment on this, but I thought better of it. "

collegemom wrote on Nov 19, 2009 11:41 AM:

" seriously! you have got to be flipping kidding me! wow there really are nothing but scumbags looking for an easy way out in this area. Lets see if we can find another way to get rich off of two people losing their lives instead of finishing college and getting a real job. Everyone in this incident seriously needs to grow up and accept this tragedy for what it is and was..an accident that happened and can't be reversed, it's done it's over and that's that. Have some respect for yourselves seriously. "

The Cobbster wrote on Nov 19, 2009 1:35 PM:

" Maybe this young man could join a branch of our military and get deployed to the Middle East. God forbid he would be exposed to something that would cause him "mental and psychological" injuries. Give me a break and God bless our troops. "

~STRANGER~ wrote on Nov 19, 2009 3:34 PM:

" Oh what a tangled web we weave. lol "

Jo wrote on Nov 19, 2009 8:00 PM:

" And I believe THIS is why our court systems are so clogged up. "

jrhendren wrote on Nov 19, 2009 11:25 PM:

" Can anyone say Sue Happy Nation? Why work when you can sue and get paid. "

charlestonmama wrote on Nov 20, 2009 8:43 AM:

" Thank you for your comment Cobbster. Excellent point! "

slap63 wrote on Nov 20, 2009 8:45 AM:

" I think HE should be sued for negligence in the fact that he seen a potentially dangerous situation and did nothing to stop it. Resulting in the deaths of two of his fellow passengers. Negligence. He could have told those two not to stand up on a moving bus. OR sue the families of the two that stood up on the bus for causing a traumatic situation for which they were psychologically affected. Yeah, I know, that idea is as ridiculous as this lawsuit is.
Do they really need to be educated on how to safely ride a bus?? I wish I could be on a jury and make the decision on this one. "

prairieguy wrote on Nov 20, 2009 9:29 AM:

" Not to worry. I'm sure a few hundred thousand dollars will cure his emotionally damaged psyche lickety-split. Only in America..... "

Harry Potter wrote on Nov 20, 2009 9:37 AM:

" " Can anyone say Sue Happy Nation? Why work when you can sue and get paid. "

Hey jr, I drove on that road that day, think I have a case? lol... Got Todd Reardon's number? "

CrowWoman wrote on Nov 20, 2009 3:10 PM:

" For once, I agree with J.R. "

Texas T wrote on Nov 20, 2009 3:44 PM:

" Hey jr, I drove on that road that day, think I have a case? lol... Got Todd Reardon's number? "

You have a computer HP - google it. LOL "

mickeygarlock wrote on Nov 20, 2009 6:47 PM:

" Strange

I was in a boat accident on Lake Mattoon when I was 18 years old, we accidently ran over 2 kids swimming to far out. Was it tramatic for me, you bet, did I sue because I was a passenger in the boat, NO, I got sued though, even though I was a passenger, it got thrown out. Getting served for a 2.5 million dollar lawsuit when you're 18 does wonders for your nerves though.

This country has become lawsuit happy, Whatch out now that the Dems are in power. Now, if you think that statement is just Obama or Dem bashing, think of this fact, since January 20th, the ads for lawsuits have went up 1000 percent, there are lawsuits now for just about every medicine taken, there were almost none before January 20th. "

chillpill wrote on Nov 20, 2009 9:50 PM:

" all these stupid lawsuits are just going to get the place shut down, and its a nice place to go, "

jrhendren wrote on Nov 21, 2009 12:26 AM:

" Harry Potter wrote on Nov 20, 2009 9:37 AM:
" " Can anyone say Sue Happy Nation? Why work when you can sue and get paid. "

Hey jr, I drove on that road that day, think I have a case? lol... Got Todd Reardon's number? "

I think it's 1-800-CONVICT
With the slogan if your guilty I'll take your case/for a vote! "

Billie Brant wrote on Nov 21, 2009 8:04 AM:

" Puh-leeze! Gag! "

The Question wrote on Nov 21, 2009 11:37 AM:

" No, like everything else in life, this horrible fatal accident can't be undone, but the irresponsible, negligent parties who permitted it to happen can be punished to make sure it doesn't happen again. And hefty civil suits are a good way to do that. "

yeah right wrote on Nov 21, 2009 1:20 PM:

" I think I am going to file a lawsuit against people who file stupid lawsuits. For mental anguish of course. "

medic57 wrote on Nov 21, 2009 9:28 PM:

" I think it's 1-800-CONVICT

Is that CONvict, or conVICT? "