The family of a Dunlap High School student killed in a head-on collision in May has filed a lawsuit against a Wyoming, Illinois, man who they believe caused her death by driving in the wrong lane along Orange Prairie Road in Peoria.
Matthew Mitchell and Danielle Courteau, the parents of 18-year-old Nevaeh Mitchell, filed a lawsuit against Levi Dietz, 25, on June 17 in Peoria County Circuit Court . The lawsuit claims Dietz was negligent in driving his 2012 Ford Fusion southbound in the northbound lanes of Orange Prairie Road on the evening of May 4, colliding head-on with Mitchell's 2012 Nissan Versa and leading to her death.
The initial complaint says that Dietz was responsible for ensuring that he drove the vehicle safely that night, but he disregarded that duty and drove it in such a matter that it "violently" collided with Mitchell's vehicle and caused her death.
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The suit claims that Dietz caused his vehicle to be driven in the wrong direction on a one-way street, failed to properly look out for other vehicles, failed to stop his vehicle in enough time so that a collision could be avoided and failed to drive on the right side of the roadway.
The family said in the complaint that they had suffered "grief, sorrow and mental suffering," enough to where Dietz would be subject to liability through the state's Wrongful Death Act , which entitles a person or estate to obtain damages from a person considered responsible for someone's death.
The family asks for a jury trial and for fair compensation under the terms of the Wrongful Death Act, with the amount being sought in excess of $50,000.
Dietz was cited in July for driving the wrong way on a divided highway, with no other charges being filed against him. He made a first appearance in court Tuesday, with review of the case slated for Oct. 1 at 10 a.m., with Peoria County Circuit Judge Katherine Legge presiding.
The Peoria Police Department said that toxicology for both Dietz and Mitchell came back negative, with their investigation into Dietz ending as a result of the completion of that report.
Dietz was hospitalized as a result of the crash but was released on May 14 after nine days of recuperation. Mitchell was two weeks away from graduating and was set to attend Loyola University Chicago on a scholarship.
A case management conference has been set for Nov. 22 at 9:30 a.m. to discuss the complaint. The family is represented by Daniel P. Cusack of Cusack & Gilfillan.
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This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Family of Dunlap student killed in Peoria car accident files suit against other driver
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