Illinois Injury Attorney Blog

Richard A. Shatto, a 38-year-old Hoopeston man, was killed in a Vermillion County Illinois car accident at 12:11 a.m. Sunday on Illinois 9 just west of Rankin, Illinois. According to police, Shatto was driving a 1997 Chevy Lumina west on Illinois Highway 9 when his car left the road and hit a guardrail. The vehicle then corrined into a field and turned over. According to reports, Mr. Shatto was not wearing a seat belt and was thrown from the vehicle. Although he was airlifted by helicopter to Carle Foundation Hospital in Urbana, Illinois, where he was pronounced dead at approximately 1:30 a.m. The cause of the crash is still under investigation.

Continue reading " HOOPESTON ILLINOIS MAN KILLED IN SINGLE CAR ACCIDENT ON HIGHWAY 9 JUST WEST OF RANKIN ILLINOIS " »

The Champaign County Coroner's office has confirmed that Richard Shatto, 38, of Hoopeston, was the decedent driver in a one-car accident at 12:11 a.m. Sunday on Illinois Route 9 west of Rankin in Vermilion County. Shatto was pronounced dead just after 1:30 a.m. Sunday at Carle Foundation Hospital, after the 1997 Chevy Lumina he was driving westbound left the roadway, striking a guard rail and ejecting him while overturning in a field.

Continue reading " VERMILLION COUNTY MAN DIES IN A ONE-CAR ACCIDENT ON ROUTE 9 WEST OF RANKIN ILLINOIS " »

A Champaign County Coroner's jury ruled the death of Robert L. Winsor, 50, of Champaign, Illinois, was suicide despite the fact that police never found a gun. Winsor, whose body was found on a picnic table at Kaufman Lake in Champaign on Dec. 13, 2008, had a gunshot would to his head; however, Champaign Police Detective, Joe Johnston, reported that the gun used to kill Winsor was never recovered.

Following 20 minutes of deliberation, coroner's jury in Champaign County ruled that the cause of death of an Urbana woman, April R. Rahming, 23, was undetermined.

Ms. Rahming died on Oct. 25 after she fell out of the passenger's side of a truck driven by her then live-in boyfriend, Charles Laroe, 25, of Urbana, on the 1800 block of Willow View Road, Urbana. According to testimony, Laroe told Champaign County Sheriff's Investigators that the passenger door of his truck didn't shut properly and that he felt a bump in the road after Ms. Rahming was run over by one of the truck's rear tires.

When Laroe jumped out of the truck to attend to Ms. Rahming, he reportedly failed to put the truck into park, and it rolled another 50 to 60 feet into a ditch. Police investigators then reported that Laroe placed Ms. Rahming back in his truck and took her to the home of her parents. Laroe told police that he took her there because it was closer than the hospital and because her stepfather knew CPR. Ms. Rahming died at her parent's home.

According to Deputy Coroner Steven Skinner, autopsy findings showed Ms. Rahming suffered multiple skull fractures, swelling of her brain, multiple lacerations, rib dislocations and loss of blood.

The McLean County coroner reported that 31–year–old Timothy R. Applegate, of Stanford died January 10th after he rear–ended a stationary garbage truck. Reports indicated that Applegate crashed his car around 6:30 this morning. Preliminary investigation believes that he apparently sneezed right before the collision and was unable to stop in time. Applegate was transported to OSF Saint Francis Medical Center, in Peoria, Illinois, where he was pronounced dead just after 8 am.

On Christmas Eve, William White received a call from administrator at Kindred Hospital saying that his 66-year-old wife of 48 years, Viola Jane White, was being transfered out of their facility and was on her way to a long-term facility in Ilinois. Viola had been a patient at Kindred Hospital in Green Cove Springs, and was on dialysis and a ventilator.

Shortly before the Christmas Eve transfer, officials at Kindred Hospital informed William that Medicaid and Medicare were no longer going to pay for Viola's treatment come mid November, and since White could not afford the $1,000 a day medical bills to keep her there, executives told him she could be moved to a facility in Illinois. White, however, fiercely disagreed with the decision to transfer Viola 1100 miles away and instructed them not to do so. On Christmas Eve, however, White was notified his wife was on her way to Illinois.

White said Kindred Hospital told him his wife signed the papers to send her to Illinois. White does not believe Viola was competent to sign nor that she understood what she was doing. In a written statement, Kindred Hospital justified their actions saying, "Upon receiving a physician discharge order, the patient was transferred to an appropriate, non-hospital level of care. The timing of this transfer was unfortunate."

The Illinois facility where Viola was transfered told Florida Media outlet, First Coast News, that "Elmwood Care does on occasion receive patients who are ventilator dependent and in the morbidity stage of dialysis, a service very few hospitals across the country can offer. We do receive out of town referrals on occasion, but the hospital is required to get authorization."

Nunziato also confirmed that Viola had passed away there Monday morning.

Continue reading " DYING WIFE SENT TO ILLINOIS LONG TERM CARE FACILITY IN SPITE OF HUSBAND'S WISHES " »

Funeral services will be held Saturday for a Carbondale teenager who died in a single-vehicle accident in Central Illinois in mid-December.

Alana Ross, a 19-year-old Carbondale girl was killed in a singe care accident while traveling on Interstate 57 in Effingham County on December 16, 2008. Accordingly to police investigation, Ross lost control of her vehicle and crashed. An autopsy was performed by the Champaign County Coroner, Duane Northrup.

At that time of the accident, central Illinois had been hit with a series of winter storms, and ice was reported on the interstate. Following the accident, Ross was taken to Carle Foundation Hospital in Urbana, Illinois, which is a Level 1 Trauma Center; however, she was pronounced dead upon arrival. While autopsy results have not been completed, Northrup said it appears Ross died from the “significant traumatic” injuries she suffered during the single car accident.

Continue reading " CARBONDALE TEEN DIES IN SINGLE CAR ACCIDENT IN CENTRAL ILLINOIS " »

At approximately 3 am, January 17, 1009, a Central Illinois teen lost control of his vehicle and struck a utility pole. Autopsy report confirmed that 18-year-old Alexander Smith died from injuries sustained in the one-car accident. The accident occurred at County Road 1000 N near the intersection of County Road 1700 East. Preliminary investigation has lead the Sheriff's Department to believe that Smith lost control of his vehicle causing the same to collide with the utility pole.

Local media outlet, WCIA 3 News, spoke with Smith's parents, who were told the news of their son's untimely death while vacationing in Florida. They reportedly flew back to Central Illinois Saturday.

According to his parents, Alex was an only child. His father described him as "a kind-hearted young man who was loved by everyone he ever met". Alex was taking mechanic classes at Parkland Community College, and had recently moved to a Philo apartment complex.

While Marcus Schrenker continues to make national headlines for his D.B. Cooper impression, few media outlets are reporting his prior ties with the Hamilton County Prosecutor's Office.

According to Court records, Schrenker and his now estranged wife previously filed suit in the Federal Court of the Southern District of Indiana against the Hamilton County Sheriff's Department, the Hamilton County Prosecutor, Sonia Leerkamp, and the Town of Fishers, as well as an individual deputy prosecutor and Sheriff employees. In their FEDERAL LAWSUIT, as filed by Indianapolis Attorney, Jeffrey McQuary, Schrenker alleged that he was wrongfully detained, arrested, and physically and emotionally injured following an incident with a motorcycle.

According to the lawsuit, Hamilton County Sheriff Deputy, Donald Ball, wrongfully and forcefully arrested Schenker on allegations that he was illegally operating a motorcycle near his then McCordsville, Indiana, home. Along with these allegations, the lawsuit also referenced harassment by the Hamilton County Prosecutor and a Deputy Prosecutor in an attempt to avoid reporting the Sheriff's Deputy's actions. According to Court files, the case was dismissed in 2007.

Continue reading " MISSING INDIANAPOLIS PILOT MARCUS SCHRENKER PREVIOUSLY FILED A FEDERAL LAWSUIT AGAINST THE SAME HAMILTON COUNTY INDIANA PROSECUTOR NOW SEEKING HIS ARREST " »

A Hamilton County Indiana Judge agreed to freeze the assets of pilot and Indianapolis businessman, Marcus Schrenker, 38, following an alleged attempt to fake an emergency with his single engine airplane, and then parachute from it before it crashed in a swampy area a few hundred yards from a residential neighborhood in the Florida panhandle.

According to police, Schrenker's financial businesses were under investigation by the Indiana Department of Insurance. Preliminary investigations indicate that Schrenker exited his small plane before it crashed, and later checked into a hotel in Alabama under a fake name before putting on a black cap and fleeing into nearby woods.

According to local media reports, the US Marshall's office has been dispatched to locate Schrenker; however, details of the search were not yet being released to the public. Airport officials at the Anderson Municipal Airport in Anderson, Indiana, indicated that Schrenker left the airport by himself on Sunday in a six-seater Piper PA-46. At the time of the incident, records indicate that Schrenker was president of three Indianapolis financial agencies called Heritage Wealth Management, Heritage Insurance Services, and Icon Wealth Management, all Indianapolis based organizations sharing the same address. According to the Indiana Secretary of State's Office, those three companies were under investigation for possible securities violations at the time of Schrenker's disappearance.

Officials believe the plane crashed at 9:15 p.m. CT on Sunday in a swampy area off the Blackwater River in East Milton, Florida. According to reports, Schrenker made a distress call to air traffic controllers indicating that the window of his plane had imploded and he was bleeding profusely. Controllers tried to tell the pilot to divert the flight to Pell City, Alabama, but he did not respond.

After the call came in, military aircraft were dispatched to intercept the plane. The pilots spotted the Piper and deployed flares to illuminate the plane as it was flying, but noticed that its door was open and the cockpit was dark. Meanwhile, Schrenker was reportedly more than 220 miles north of the crash site in Alabama. Officials in Florida received a call on Monday from the Childersburg, Alabama Police Department indicating that a white male fitting the description of Schrenker had approached a Childersburg's police officer, and indicated that he had been in a canoeing accident with friends. According to reports, Schrenker's pants were wet from the knees down. According to a police news release, Schrenker also had parachuting goggles and his own Indiana Driver's License with him.

At the time Schrenker approach them, Childersburg police had not been advised of the plane crash. Per his request, they took Schrenker to a nearby hotel. When reports of the crash came in, police went back to the hotel and entered Schrenker's room but he had already left. According to hotel staff, Schrenker paid for the room with cash and checked in with a fake name.

Continue reading " FISHERS INDIANA BUSINESS MAN FAKES HIS OWN DEATH IN ELABORATE PLANE CRASH AND PARACHUTE STUNT " »

State Police in Central Illinois responded to over 50 accidents on Illinois Interstates. Dangerous winter weather conditions were being blamed for the accidents that seemingly began around 7:00 a.m. on Tuesday morning.

A school bus from the Buckley, Loda, Paxton, Iroquis County School District ended up in a ditch, causing injury to the driver and at least one child. Police also reported a fatal accident on eastbound Interstate 74 near Tilton. According to reports, a 42 year old female lost control of her Toyota Tacoma pick-up truck and rolled over several times before coming to rest on its roof in the westbound lanes. The reports also identified at least two children in the vehicle, both of whom are believe to have survived. The children were transported to Provena United Samitaritan Hospital for medical treatment.

Continue reading " MULTIPLE CAR ACCIDENTS OCCUR ON ICY ROADS IN CENTRAL ILLINOIS " »

Harvey Welch, an attorney from Urbana, entered his appearance in Champaign County Circuit Court on behalf of Elizabeth Drewes, 53, of the 1000 block of Churchhill Downs Drive. Drewes remains in the Champaign County jail on a $5-million bond for aggravated DUI and reckless homicide charges stemming from a three vehicle collision on I-74 in December, 2008. Twenty-four-year-old, Brittany Babb was killed in the December crash and three others were injured. Welch is also representing Drewes in another DUI case involving a single car crash in September, 2008. In that case, Drewes was arrested after allegedly crashing her Cadillac Escalade on I-57 near Thomasboro. Reports from that arrest indicate that her blood-alcohol content was 0.31 percent during that incident. Judge Rich Klaus set Drewes' next court date on the more recent charges for February 25, 2009, before Judge Chase Leonhard.

Attorney Welch entered a plea of not guilty and requested a jury trial on behalf of Elizabeth Drewes. Attorney Welch himself made news last August when he was sued by a former client, Patrick Thompson, in Small Claims Court for an alleged legal malpractice claim. According to Court files, Welch was ordered to pay $3,000 back to Thompson, as well as cover the cost of court fees.

Thompson filed the small claims suit pro se (meaning he represented himself) alleging that Welch had committed legal malpractice during his criminal trial. Thompson argued that he had hired Welch to defend himself against charges of sexual abuse and home invasion in a criminal trial that took place in 2006. After Welch called only one witness, Thompson was found guilty. Dropping Welch, Thompson hired two new attorneys, Bob Kirchner and Ruth Wyman, who filed a post-trial motion to reverse the guilty verdict. In a rare courtroom decision, Judge Harry Clem found that Welch had provided “ineffective assistance of counsel” and granted Thompson a new criminal trial. This last May, with the help of new legal counsel (Kirchner and Wyman), a jury found Thompson not guilty of the criminal charges.

Records indicate that Harvey Welch works as a Public Defender in Ford County, but has an office at 401 W. Elm in Urbana, Illinois 61801-3231. According to the Illinois ARDC website, Welch has been in practice since October, 1980.

Continue reading " CHAMPAIGN WOMAN ACCUSED OF DRUNK DRIVING IN FATAL INTERSTATE 74 CAR ACCIDENT HIRES URBANA ATTORNEY " »

Illinois State Police and fire crews from the Springfield, Waggoner and Farmersville were assisting in the cleanup of portions of northbound Interstate 55 in central Illinois. The Interstate was closed after a tanker truck hauling corrosive chemicals overturned on its side just before 8 a.m. Tuesday morning near Waggoner.

According to fire crews, the truck spilled two different volatile and corrosive chemicals.

Through their website, Medicare.gov, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and Medicare are now publishing what they describe as Nursing Home Resident Rights.

Per current law, Nursing home residents have certain rights and protections, and all nursing homes are required to provide this list to new residents and publish a copy in their facility.

Some of these resident rights include:

-The right to be treated with dignity and respect.
-The right to be informed in writing about services and fees before you enter the nursing home.
-The right to manage your own money or to choose someone else you trust to do this for you.
-The right to privacy, and to keep and use your personal belongings and property as long as it doesn't interfere with the rights, health, or safety of others.
-The right to be informed about your medical condition, medications, and to see your own doctor. You also have the right to refuse medications and treatments.
-The right to have a choice over your schedule (for example, when you get up and go to sleep), your activities and other preferences that are important to you.
-The right to an environment more like a home that maximizes your comfort and provides you with assistance to be as independent as possible.

Continue reading " CENTERS FOR MEDICARE & MEDICAID SERVICES ISSUES NURSING HOME RESIDENTS' RIGHTS LIST " »

Police identified a Bloomington woman killed when her SUV rolled over on Interstate 74 near Tilton, Illinois on Tuesday morning as Angel McDonald. McDonald had recently moved to Bloomingtion from Bradington, Florida. According to reports, McDonald had four-year-old twins who were in the vehicle at the time of the accident.
State Police and the Vermillion County Coroner's office speculated that the childrens' safety seats were a contributing factor in their survival, as the children were securely fastened. Preliminary investigations led State Police to believe that McDonald's vehicle rolled over several times before coming to rest. Portions of the Interstate were shut down while emergency personnel attended the scene.

Continue reading " POLICE RELEASE THE NAME OF THE BLOOMINGTION MOTHER OF TWINS KILLED IN CAR ACCIDENT - SUV ROLLOVER ON I-74 TUESDAY MORNING " »

Police say an early morning accident sent a 23-year old Cherry Valley woman, Regina Shawgo, to the hospital. Shawgo was driving East on Route 9 just after 2:00 a.m. when her vehicle was allegedly struck from behind by a car driven by 19-year-old Justin Donaho.

According to police reports, both cars lost control and Shawgo's vehicle overturned in a ditch. Shawgo was transported by life flight to O-S-F St. Francis Medical Center. Police believe alcohol was a factor and cited Donaho with driving under the influence. Donaho was treated at Graham Hospital in Canton, Illinois and released.

Continue reading " ALCOHOL INVOLVED IN EARLY MORNING CRASH THAT SENDS CANTON ILLINOIS FEMALE TO HOSPITAL " »

The Peoria County coroner is investigating the death of a Kewanne man involved in a single car accident in Stark County. 46 year-old Albert Bonner was sent to OSF Saint Francis Medical Center after sustaining head injuries during the accident. Bonner was pronounced dead by hospital staff on December 31st. The Coroner continues to investigate the cause; however, reports indicate that Bonner was not wearing his seat belt.

Continue reading " KEWANEE MAN KILLED IN SINGLE CAR ACCIDENT IN STARK COUNTY ILLINOIS " »

Illinois State Police near Pesotum, Champaign County, Illinois, confirmed a motor vehicle accident on Interstate 74 did involve at least one fatality. The accident reportedly took place near mile marker 213.

Illinois State Police closed the westbound lanes of Interstate 74 as a result of the one-vehicle accident. The crash was just one among many on I-74, and numerous city, county and rural roads.

Continue reading " ICY ROADS THROUGHOUT ILLINOIS AND INDIANA CAUSE NUMEROUS CAR ACCIDENTS AND AT LEAST ONE FATALITY " »

29-year-old, Kara Holt, of Gibson City, Ford County, was killed in a car accident at the corner of Prospect Avenue and Healey Street in Champaign when a 23-year-old suspect, Marc Featherstone, allegedly failed to stop his 1998 Toyota at a stop sign on Healey Street. Featherstone was charged with aggravated DUI and failure to yield, according to Lieutenant Michael Paulus of the Champaign Police Department.

Continue reading " CAR ACCIDENT IN CHAMPAIGN ILLINOIS CLAIMS THE LIFE OF A 29 YEAR OLD FEMALE " »

Placing your loved one in a reputable long-term care facility is just the first step in ensuring they are well cared for. Regardless of complaints or sanctions found during state and federal inspections (be they few or many), residential facilities are often understaffed. This fact in concert with the advanced needs of elder patients can create a worrisome environment. As an advocate for your loved one, you've got federal (and sometimes state) law on your side to insist that your relative or friend gets the quality of care they deserve. The Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) and your state law contain many protections.

The following are just a sample from the Code of Federal Regulations:

• Care Plans
Each nursing home resident is entitled to a personalized "care plan," that addresses their respective medical and safety needs. This plan must have an anticipated goal of ensuring a resident/patient maintains their highest practicable physical, mental and psychosocial well-being. Federal law requires that facilities do a full assessment of a resident's condition within 14 days of admission, and at least every 12 months thereafter. A care plan should include measurable objectives and timetables.

• Visiting Hours
In my experience with friends or family members that have loved ones in nursing homes, it is not at all uncommon for facilities to put forth the idea that Family can only visit during visiting hours. Not only is this mendacious, Federal legislation actually specifically prohibits such rules. 42 CFR 483.10(j) allows immediate family the right to visit at any time. In fact, we often advise clients to visit during off-hours so that they can perceive their loved one's environment when staff members aren't expecting visitors.

• Skilled Care or Rehabilitation Services
In the past, we have had clients tell us that their parents' nursing home facility has terminated skilled care or rehab services because their Mom or Dad weren't making progress. Again, however, this is contrary to federal and often times, state law. Assuming that the resident would benefit from such services, a facility is charged with trying to maintain their condition regardless of progress. All facilities are required to make sure that a person's ability to carry out activities of daily living doesn't deteriorate. The only exception would be if the individual's medical condition deteriorates to such an extent that termination of the activity is in their better interest.

• Nutrition and Eating
Feeding tubes may be used only if absolutely necessary. Long-term care facilities are not permitted to utilize them solely to address a resident who eats slowly or needs extra help cutting or eating food. The facility must provide whatever help a resident needs to eat without extrinsic medical involvement such as Gastric or G-Tubes. Feeding tubes should only be placed with qualified physician orders, and where absolutely necessary to maintain health.

Continue reading " FEDERAL AND ILLINOIS NURSING HOME LAWS PLACE POWER IN THE HANDS OF FAMILY MEMBERS " »

A bicyclist was injured when a car with ice and snow on the windshield struck him from behind early Sunday, December 21, 2008. Jonathon McGrew of the 600 block of West Church Street, Champaign, was taken to Carle Foundation Hospital following the accident at 3:50 a.m. Sunday, according to a Champaign police report.

According to the police report, McGrew was wearing a reflective vest and riding his bike north on Prospect Avenue near Harvard Street. A vehicle being driven by Anthony Antrim, 200 block of West Green Street, Champaign County, collided with McGrew while also headed north on Prospect.

Continue reading " CAR STRIKES BICYCLIST IN CHAMPAIGN COUNTY ILLINOIS CAUSING INJURY " »

The federal government through the CMS (The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services) has placed hundreds of nursing homes on a list of long-term care facilities that it wants to improve systemic issues or face expulsion from the Medicaid program.

The watch list is intended to heighten efforts to bring more attention to quality deficiencies at long-term care or nursing home facilities identified on this "special focus facility," or SFF, list.

The pressure is important because Medicaid is a significant payer for long-term care facilities. By utilizing financial leverage, CMS hopes to bring about improvements in operations at poor-quality or high risk nursing homes.

In November of 2007, CMS began highlighting nursing homes with serious quality issues on its Nursing Home Compare Web site.

Continue reading " THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT PLACES ILLINOIS NURSING HOMES ON THEIR WATCH LIST " »

The CMS and HHS have developed a new Five-Star Rating system that evaluates Nursing Home care.

According to the CMS website, the Five-Star Quality Rating System was created to help consumers, their families, and caregivers compare nursing homes more easily and help identify areas about which you may want to ask questions. This rating system is based on continued efforts as a result of the Omnibus Reconciliation Act of 1987 (OBRA '87), a nursing home reform law, and more recent quality improvement campaigns such as the Advancing Excellence in America’s Nursing Homes, a coalition of consumers, health care providers, and nursing home professionals.

Nursing home ratings are taken from the following three sources of data:

Health Inspections
Staffing
Quality Measures

More stars are better.

***** Much Above Avg.
**** Above Avg.
*** Average
** Below Avg.
* Much Below Avg.

Currently, 792 Illinois Nursing Homes have been evaluated under the system and can be researched on the CMS Website.

Continue reading " CMS ISSUES NEW FIVE STAR RATING TO ASSIST ILLINOIS FAMILIES IN FINDING QUALITY NURSING HOMES AND REDUCE NEGLECT " »