Greg Monforton and Partners will be representing a Windsor area family whose children were killed in a 43 car pileup on Interstate 75 in Detroit in January. They are asking that any witnesses come forward to help determine if there were any negligent actions that took place to cause the car accident.
“At this stage of the process, we are not alleging wrongdoing on part of anyone,” Greg Monforton said. “It may be there was no careless driving or driving errors on the part of anyone, but maybe there was.”
Monforton’s investigation into the crash coincides with the Michigan State Police analysis of the mile-long catastrophe, which Lt. Mike Shaw says could take a couple weeks to six months depending on how quickly the family’s vehicle can be analyzed at the State Police’s Northville crime lab.
Monforton and lawyer Robert Darling of McKeen & Associates of Detroit expect to examine if vehicle speeds were within the legal limit and if drugs or alcohol was a factor, among other things.
“Once we have obtained those answers, we will determine, what, if any, legal actions will be taken,” Monforton said.
Shaw said if wrongdoing is found there could be additional penalties.
“We could issue a citation or if it’s serious enough we would take it to the prosecutor’s office, but we’re not at that point yet,” Shaw said.
Police said the five members of the Windsor-area family were travelling around 9:15 a.m. Jan. 31 in their Mazda6 along I-75 near Springwells in Detroit when a snow squall limited visibility, causing a chain-reaction crash.
Step-siblings 7-year-old Aidan Hicks and 9-year-old Gabrielle Greenwood were killed in the crash.
Glen Greenwood, Gabrielle’s father and Aidan’s stepfather, has been released from medical care and is recovering with his eldest 10-year-old daughter, Hannah Greenwood.
Aidan’s mother and Gabrielle’s stepmother, Kim Barrett, is still at a rehabilitation facility in Michigan after suffering “catastrophic injuries,” according to Monforton.
“Her road to recovery will not be smooth or easy, but her family is hopeful,” he said.”
Witnesses are asked to contact the Windsor injury lawyers at Greg Monforton & Partners at (519) 258-6490 or Darling at (248) 880-0180.