Chicago bicyclist struck by Chicago police squad car

The Chicago Breaking News Center is reporting that a squad car struck a 15-year old boy on his bicycle in Chicago's Albany Park neighborhood. Not surprisingly, the Chicago Police Department has claimed that the police officer involved in the collision was responding to an emergency call at the time of the collision.

The reason that the CPD's claim is not surprising is that Illinois law provides immunities from liability to police officers responding to an emergency. The Local Government and Governmental Employees Tort Immunity Act (745 ILCS 10/) provides the following:

(745 ILCS 10/2‑202) (from Ch. 85, par. 2‑202)
Sec. 2‑202. A public employee is not liable for his act or omission in the execution or enforcement of any law unless such act or omission constitutes willful and wanton conduct.
(Source: P.A. 84‑1431.)

The important part of this law is the idea of "the execution or enforcement of any law." The caselaw on this phrase essentially says that a police officer will not be responsible for any injuries if they are in the process of responding to a police call or an emergency. Many police officers know this and then claim that they were responding to a police call or an emergency at the time of the accident even though this wasn't the case. Many cases are litigated over whether the police were, in fact, responding to a police call or an emergency.

If the police officer was responding to a police call or an emergency at the time of an accident, they may still be held liable if they acted "willfully and wantonly" at the time of the accident. However, "willfully and wantonly" is a difficult standard to reach and almost requires the injured person to show that the police office either meant to injure them or completely ignored them.

If you are injured while bicycling by a police car (or ambulance, or firetruck or any other "emergency vehicle") and the lights weren't on or you didn't hear a siren, it is important that you make sure this is noted in any reports of the accident. Remember, it is the police department's burden to show they were responding to an accident and they are entitled to immunity.

While this law may favor police departments, and there are good public policy reasons for the legitimate cases, injured people are entitled to fair justice as well. If you have any questions regarding this post or this legal issue, please contact Attorney Mike Keating at MKeating@KeatingLegal.com or 312-208-7702.

The Case of Trenton Booker

Trenton Booker was like a lot of 13-year old boys. On May 22nd he reportedly snuck out of his house so he could ride his bike with friends. On that night he was riding his bike down Ashland Avenue near its intersection with 81st Street on Chicago's South Side. As Trenton approached the intersection, he was struck by a Dodge Charger driven by an off-duty police officer. Witness reports state that the Dodge Charger never slowed down and struck Trenton with such force that it threw the boy over 50 feet in the air, coming to rest by a nearby gas station. Trenton was reportedly dead on impact. The Dodge Charger sped from the collision scene.

The off-duty police officer, Richard Bolling, has been charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, leaving the scene of an accident where a death or injury occurred ("hit-and-run"), driving in the wrong direction on a one-way street and transportation of alcohol.

At the criminal trial, Bolling will either plead not guilty and ask for a trial or accept a guilty plea. But what about in a civil case? What remedies are available to the family of Trenton?

The initial inquiry involves what insurance coverage is available to Trenton's family. In all likelihood Bolling had an automobile insurance policy as required under Illinois law. However, Illinois law only requires "minimum" automobile insurance in the amount of $20,000 per individual and $40,000 for an entire occurrence where more than one person may have been hurt. Insurance policies can run into millions of dollars, but policies with higher limits typically are those associated with commercial policies on delivery vehicles, company cars, and situations like that.

Beyond the available insurance coverage, Trenton's family may also attempt to proceed with a claim for punitive damages. Punitive damages are those beyond the pain and suffering of Trenton prior to death and the loss suffered by the family. Punitive damages are "punishment" for the actions of a defendant.

Section 2-604.1 of the Illinois Code of Civil Procedure provides that a plaintiff may request the judge, through a pre-trial motion, to allow them to seek punitive damages if there are "facts sufficient to support an award of punitive damages." The kind of facts the court looks for are those of reprehensible conduct above and beyond typical negligence when someone may have just made a mistake.

If the facts of this case as they have been reported are true, then this is a clear example of a case where punitive damages may be sought. The driver was allegedly drunk, speeding, and fled from the scene after striking a child riding his bike in the street. Insurance companies do not typically provide coverage for punitive damages so the individual defendant is usually personally responsible for satisfying any judgment that includes punitive damages.

By any estimation, it is unlikely that any settlement or verdict could even attempt to ease the pain to Trenton Booker's family. But fortunately Illinois law does provide that the family may recover for their loss, and have a chance of punishing behavior such as the behavior that has been reported in the news in this case.

Chicago's Helmet Lady Raises Awareness of Need for Helmets

Chicago's "Helmet Lady," Kathy Schubert of the Lincoln Park neighborhood has made it her personal mission to preach the practice of bicyclists wearing a helmet. (Read the June 8th Sun-Times article here).

The "Helmet Lady" is also an artist of sorts who has compiled a "Helmets that Saved Lives" website. This website shows photographs from riders who were involved in a bike accident and their helmet prevented injury by absorbing the impact. Best of all, the website shares the stories of the riders who were saved by their helmets. These stories involve individuals as disparate as weekend warriors and Lance Armstrong.

Illinois law does not require bicyclists to wear helmets. However, it is entirely possible that legislation could be enacted in Illinois. Within the past couple of years Illinois cyclists have seen changes in the Rules of the Road related to how to properly signal a turn, the lights required on a bicycle, and rights of bicyclists on the road. These legal changes demonstrate that the Illinois legislature (and local municipalities) are paying attention to bicyclists as the numbers of riders increase. Motorcycle riders throughout the United States saw an increase in legislation requiring them to wear a helmet for their own safety, and to reduce the medical care costs incurred by the States when uninsured riders needed medical care that would have been prevented by a helmet. If there is an increase in uninsured riders who suffer serious (and expensive) injuries while riding, it could be only a matter of time before bicyclists are required to wear a helmet.

There is no disputing the effectiveness of a bicycle helmet in preventing injury. There is an urban legend that helmets can cause an injury because of its awkward design. This is false and based on shoddy and unreliable science. To read a more reliable and scientific study see this New England Journal of Medicine study that concluded that bicycle helmets have a 85-89% effectiveness in reducing brain injuries, especially in children.

Then again, don't just trust the New England Journal of Medicine. Just ask the "Helmet Lady" or any of the riders who wrote her detailing how their helmet saved their head.

REI Recalls Trionfo Road Bikes

Recreational Equipment Inc. (REI) of Washington state has announced a recall of Novara Trionfo road bikes (pictured to the left). The bikes have carbon fiber Aprebic forks.

There have been two reported incidents of the Aprebic forks separating from the steerer tube (the tube that inserts into the frame). In the defective bikes, the separated steerer tube causes the front fork and wheel to disassemble from the bike and the rider to fall. There have been two incidents involving the Novara road bikes with reported injuries.

This is the second recall by REI of one of its bicycles in the past couple of months. In May REI announced the recall of Dahon folding bikes. In that case the Dahon folding bikes had a faulty hinge at the handlebar that was capable of breaking.

A large number of posts on the Illinois Bicycle Law weblog have been devoted to reported the number of defective bicycles on the market. Many of these defective bicycles that are the subject of recalls have been by some of the best known and most trusted names in the business. And this illustrates an important point: no matter who makes the bike, it is a machine, and machine can break due to poor maintenance, inadequate design, or faulty manufacturing. Because of this, Illinois law provides a recourse to those injured by defective bikes through a case based on product liability.

A consumer may bring a case for their injuries when the bike or one of its parts is unreasonably dangerous, and that dangerous condition led to the injury. The law in these cases is often complicated and multifaceted. If you have been injured because of what you believe to be a faulty bicycle, please contact Attorney Mike Keating at 312-208-7702 or MKeating@KeatingLegal.com.