BELLEVILLE – A passenger in a vehicle that was involved in an accident is suing three defendants for the injuries she suffered. She is citing negligence.
Tarmela Nguyen filed the suit March 7 in St. Clair County Circuit Court against Kirsten Marie Blakely, Minal H. Amin and Jose A. Warner Castillo.
On March 10, 2014, the plaintiff was the front passenger in a vehicle being driven by defendant Castillo that was merging onto Interstate 64 eastbound from Interstate 55 southbound in East St. Louis Township, the suit says.
The defendant Castillo had stopped his vehicle due to heavy traffic and construction cones set up at the entrance of the on-ramp, the suit claims. The suit states that at that point, the defendant Castillo's vehicle was allegedly rear-ended by defendant Amin's vehicle, which had been allegedly rear-ended by defendant Blakely's vehicle.
The negligent acts of all three defendants, according to the complaint, included failing to keep a proper lookout, failing to operate the vehicle in a safe manner, failing to used every precaution to avoid a collision and failing to bring the vehicle safely to a stop.
As a result of the alleged negligence, the plaintiff was severely and permanently injured, has had past and will have future pain and suffering, has had loss of enjoyment of life, and has experienced lost wages and increased medical expenses, according to the suit
The plaintiff seeks from all three defendants compensatory damages in an amount decided at trial to be fair and reasonable in excess of $50,000, prejudgment interest, attorney fees, court costs and any other relief the court deems appropriate. She is represented by Michael R. Wesley of the Law Office of Michael R. Wesley LLC in Wood River.
St. Clair County Circuit Court case number 16-L-127