December 21st marks the Winter Solstice for 2021. The Winter Solstice occurs when the North Pole is tilted the farthest from the sun and there is the least amount of daylight. After the Winter Solstice the days slowly get longer until then end of January when we gain two minutes of sunlight each day. While that doesn’t sound that far away, there are some long and dark nights ahead of us. These long nights in winter mean that Illinois bicyclists who commute to work via their bikes will be riding home in the dark. It is important to note that a
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Latest from Illinois Bicycle Lawyers
Chicago Cyclist Killed In Crash With Semi-Truck On Ashland Avenue
The Chicago cycling community is again faced with another tragedy due to the death of a young cyclist on Friday night. According to the Chicago Police Department, the fatal crash occurred at approximately 10:20 a.m. on Friday, December 10th in the 4000 block of South Ashland Avenue. This is a stretch of Ashland Avenue that is heavily trafficked with semi-trucks and other industrial traffic due to the nearby Norfolk Southern Railyard and accompanying rail road tracks.
According to the Illinois Traffic Crash Report, the collision occurred when a truck driver turned a 2017 International tractor and connected trailer right
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$300,000.00 Settlement for Injured Triathlete Shows Importance of Fighting for Underinsured Motorist Insurance Coverage
Last spring on a beautiful day a local bicyclist and her adult daughter went on a bicycle ride through Naperville. Their pleasant day was cut short when a motorist failed to notice them and turned immediately in front of the bicyclists. The daughter was able to avoid the driver but the other bicyclist slammed into the side of the motor vehicle and was thrown off of her bicycle. She landed hard and struck her head in the process. The Naperville police issued a citation to the motorist for failing to yield the right of way to the bicyclists. The driver of
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Chicago Bicyclist Killed In Collision With Van In Jefferson Park
The Chicago Sun-Times reported that a 59-year-old man named Thomas Travers passed away on Monday July 26, 2021 after being struck by a van on North Milwaukee Avenue. The collision occurred in the northwest side neighborhood of Jefferson Park. Mr. Travers spent two days at St. Francis Hospital in Evanston, Illinois after the crash where he sadly passed away due to the multiple injuries he sustained from the accident.The crash occurred in the afternoon of July 24, 2021, on the busy road of the 5300 block of North Milwaukee Avenue. Milwaukee Avenue is a popular street among cyclists in Chicago
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Chicago Boy Killed in Collision with Modified Truck Driven by Chicago Police Officer
A Chicago police officer tragically ran over and killed a 9-year old Chicago boy who was crossing the street on his bicycle. Chicago is in shock over one of the most tragic deaths of a Chicago bicyclist in the city’s history. Beyond the massive tragedy, the death of 9-year old Hershel Weinberger in West Rogers Park stands out for many reasons: the young age of the victim, the vehicle involved and the status of the driver of the vehicle.According to an interview with the father of the boy, Shamai Weinberger, to the Chicago Tribune, young Hershel Weinberger was riding
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River Forest Cyclist Killed In Crash In Oak Park Near "Share The Road" Sign
The Chicago Sun-Times is reporting that an Oak Park bicyclist by the name of Peter McDonnell tragically died as a result of injuries sustained in a bicycle vs. motor vehicle crash. According to the article, Mr. McDonnell tragically succumbed to the injuries sustained in the crash after days at Loyola University Medical Center. The crash occurred on March 9th at the intersection of Division Street and North Harlem Avenue in west suburban River Forest. This intersection is right by Dominican University and is regularly travelled by cyclists. Images of the area show that right on Division Street is a “Share The
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The "Open and Obvious" Defense In Pothole and Roadway Defect Bicycle Crash Cases
Far and away the most common types of cases we handle as bicycle law attorneys involve collisions between motor vehicles and bicyclists where the driver of the motor vehicle is at fault. Common examples of this are doorings, right hook crashes, left hook crashes, failure to give the bicyclist 3-Feet when passing. However, a large number of the cases Keating Law Offices has handled involve bicyclists who were injured when their bicycle hit a defect in the roadway and they crashed.Illinois law on these types of cases is very, very fact specific. IllinoisBicycleLaw.com has previously delved into the crucial Illinois
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The "Open and Obvious Defense" In Pothole And Other Roadway Defect Cases
Far and away the most common types of cases we handle as bicycle law attorneys involve collisions between motor vehicles and bicyclists where the driver of the motor vehicle is at fault. Common examples of this are doorings, right hook crashes, left hook crashes, failure to give the bicyclist 3-Feet when passing. However, a large number of the cases Keating Law Offices has handled involve bicyclists who were injured when their bicycle hit a defect in the roadway and they crashed.Illinois law on these types of cases is very, very fact specific. IllinoisBicycleLaw.com has previously delved into the crucial Illinois
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Keating Law Offices Supports Equiticity on Giving Tuesday 2020
In the spirit of giving, Keating Law Offices is proud to announce it is matching donations made to Equiticity’s end of the year “Turn on the Power, and Let Equity Flow” fundraiser up to $1,000.00 for Giving Tuesday.About EquiticityEquiticity, a racial equity movement founded in Chicago which advocates for racial equity, increased mobility and racial justice for communities of color across the United States, is embarking on a campaign to raise $10,000.00 before the end of the year through their “Turn on the Power and Let Equity Flow” campaign. The funds raised will go towards research,
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Aurora Police Request Help in Identifying Driver in a Fatal Hit-and-Run
Another Chicago-area bicyclist has lost their life in a hit-and-run crash. On November 14th, 27-year-old Dragomir Misic was struck in a fatal hit-and-run collision in west suburban Aurora. The bicyclist was riding near the intersection of Montgomery Road and White Eagle Drive around 7:30 p.m. The driver then fled the scene. Aurora Police are asking for the public’s help regarding any information about the crash. If anyone knows any information about the collision, you are encouraged to call the Aurora Police Department at 630-256-5330 or the Aurora Area Crime Stoppers at 630-892-1000.Key Steps To Follow If A Victim Of
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75-Year Old Cyclist Killed in Crash with Driver of Motor Vehicle in Cicero
75-year-old cyclist, Efren Avitia, was killed in a crash in near west suburban Cicero on Friday, November 13, 2020. According to a Chicago Sun-Times article, the victim was struck by a vehicle when he was biking near 31st Street and Austin Boulevard at about 10:00 a.m. The victim was transported via ambulance from the scene of the crash to Northwestern Memorial Hospital where he was pronounced dead early Saturday morning. An autopsy of the victim found that the person died of multiple blunt force injuries and the death was ruled an “accident.” The use of the term “accident” is
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Illinois Bicyclist Killed in Crash with Passing Truck in Southern Illinois
Last Thursday, November 5, 2020, a bicyclist was killed in a collision with a truck while cycling in southern Illinois. According to reports, 58-year-old David Coleson was riding a bicycle southbound on Illinois 3 near its intersection with Airport Road in Alexander County. Alexander County is best known for being the southernmost county in the State of Illinois. The Illinois State Police reported that Mr. Coleson was killed after we was struck by a truck while riding his bicycle. According to the Illinois State Police the collision occurred when both Mr. Coleson and the driver of the truck were both
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The Difference Between "Riding in Front of a Vehicle" and the Vehicle Not Yielding to a Bike
A 12-year-old Chicago cyclist was struck by a car on Chicago South Side in the South Chicago neighborhood. This is a sequence of events that unfortunately happens often on the densely populated streets of Chicago. This particular instance raises the issue of how the details of a crash matter in determining who bears responsibility under the law for a crash. According to the Chicago Sun-Time article regarding the incident the crash occurred as the boy “traveled in front of the turning vehicle.” Details in the Sun-Times article about the incident are otherwise limited. However, with that limited information the crash would
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The Duty of "Due Care" in the Chicago Municipal Code and Illinois Vehicle Code
The City of Chicago has garnered a great deal of attention for its efforts in making Chicago more friendly to cyclists. A large part of the city’s efforts have been in enacting new laws designed to try and protect bicyclists. What is interesting is that one of the most explicit laws in Illinois is nearly forty years old. On August 12, 1981 Public Act 82-132 became law when it amended the Illinois Vehicle Code. It stated: Every driver of a vehicle shall exercise due care to avoid colliding with any person operating a bicycle or other device propelled by human
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Bartlett Woman Killed In Elgin Hit-and-Run
Another Chicago-area cyclist has been killed in a hit-and-run. This most recent tragedy unfolded this past Tuesday in Elgin when a reckless driver struck and killed one cyclist and left another critically injured.According to the Chicago Tribune and the Elgin Police Department, the shocking timeline began around 4 pm near East Chicago and Villa Court when the driver, Lance C. Neal of Elgin, IL struck his first victim. That victim was able to flag down police in the area who then pursued Neal. As police attempted to stop him, Neal fled at a high rate of speed. Unfortunately, as
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Chicago Cyclist Critically Injured in Right Hook Crash with City of Chicago Truck
A female Chicago bicyclist was struck by a City of Chicago as she turned from Milwaukee Avenue onto Belmont in the Avondale neighborhood. This tragically appears to be yet another “right hook” collision involving a Chicago bicyclist and a commercial truck. Most troubling is the fact that the truck was a City of Chicago Department of Transportation dump truck. A “right hook” where a vehicle turns right across a bicyclist to the right of the vehicle is always illegal in the city of Chicago. The action by the truck driver in this instance is most concerning because there is a street
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