Handcuffed police car passenger allegedly injured in collision seeks trial date

A woman who was allegedly injured when a driver struck the police cruiser she was sitting in while handcuffed in the backseat has requested a scheduling order in order to begin preparing for an official trial date.

Because the parties have been unable to reach a settlement, plaintiff Alisha Burke filed a motion for entry of a scheduling order through attorney Stephen C. Buser of Columbia on Feb. 19. The plaintiff asks the court to provide the parties with deadlines for completion of discovery and a trial date.

In her lawsuit filed last May, Burke alleges she was riding in a 2013 Ford Taurus, which was operated by Alton Police officer Stephen W. January. The officer stopped at the intersection of Pearl and Silver Streets in Alton when defendant Mark Robinson collided with the cruiser, allegedly causing her severe and permanent injuries.

Burke blames Robinson for causing the collision, saying he negligently failed to keep his vehicle under proper control, failed to observe the vehicle she was in, failed to keep a proper lookout for other vehicles, drove into January’s stopped vehicle and failed to drive entirely within his one lane.

Robinson answered the complaint in July through attorney Michael P. Murphy of Belleville. He claims the alleged injuries were the result of the plaintiff’s own negligence.

Burke seeks a judgment of more than $50,000, plus costs.

Madison County Circuit Court case number 14-L-681