$9.19 Million Jury Verdict Entered in Highway Crash that Caused Catastrophic Injuries to the Driver and Minor Passenger

Kerry Hogland was 36 years old when driving her sedan on a highway near Fredericktown, Mo. An employee of Town & Country Grocers of Fredericktown drove onto the highway from an on-ramp. The driver of the Town & Country Grocers vehicle did not heed a stop sign at the end of the ramp and crashed broadside into Hogland’s sedan on the passenger side.

Hogland’s vehicle spun out of control and landed in a field next to the highway.

She suffered an intracranial hemorrhage, an epidural hematoma that necessitated a craniotomy and a skull fracture that left her deaf in her right ear. A craniotomy is a surgical procedure where a bone flap is removed from the skull to allow access to the brain. The surgery removes a part of the bone from the skull to expose the brain. The bone flap is temporarily removed and then replaced after the brain surgery is completed.  Obviously, this is a very serious and dangerous surgery.

As a result of the crash, Hogland has suffered from anxiety and depression and experiences cognitive deficits that prevent her from returning to her full-time work as an ultrasound technician where she earned approximately $50,000 per year.  Hogland’s medical expenses associated with the injuries she suffered were $321,800.

The other passenger in Hogland’s vehicle was her minor son, who was in the front passenger seat. He suffered lacerations and soft-tissue injuries to his right arm, knee and ankle injuries, as well as posttraumatic stress.

Hogland and her son filed a lawsuit against Town & Country Grocers claiming that its employee chose not to heed the stop sign during the course and scope of his employment. The jury’s verdict was $9,190,000 for Hogland and $450,000 for her minor son.

The attorney representing the Hogland family was Roger A. Dryer. At this jury trial, Dryer engaged experts that testified in neurosurgery, neurology and neuropsychology.

The defendant presented experts in mental health counseling and neuropsychology.

Hogland v. Town & Country Grocers of Fredericktown, MO., Inc., Confidential Docket No. (E.D. Ark. Aug. 20, 2015).

Kreisman Law Offices has been handling intersection crash cases, truck accident cases, automobile accident cases, car crash cases, rear-end crash cases, T-bone accident cases, motorcycle accident cases and bicycle accident cases for individuals and families who have been harmed, injured or died as a result of the carelessness or negligence of another for more than 40 years in and around Chicago, Cook County and its surrounding areas, including Chicago (Stockyards, Canaryville, Bridgeport, Bronzeville, Chinatown, Near South, West Loop, Little Italy, Ukrainian Village, Wicker Park, Chatham, Burnside, Pullman, Lake Calumet, Roseland, Washington Heights, Beverly, Roscoe Village, Lincoln Square, Albany Park, Irving Park, Jefferson Park), Skokie, Wilmette, Winnetka, Glenview, Glencoe, Northbrook, Palatine, Buffalo Grove and Western Springs, Ill.

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