Illinois Lawsuit Accuses Defendants of Child Negligence

Alton, Illinois attorney Michael Glisson from the law firm of WWF&G has filed a personal injury lawsuit with several counts of negligence and violations of the Family Expense Act against a family from Sandwich, Illinois in the county of DeKalb.

The suit claims that the family was partially responsible for the injuries a minor who, with his friend, helped to knock a bee hive to the ground and light it on fire. When the minor defendant poured kerosene or gasoline onto the flames, the contained ignited and exploded, causing burn injuries to his friend, also a minor.

Glisson’s lawsuit accuses the minor friend and his parents of negligence: the minor for obtaining and pouring ignitable fluid, which he did not have permission to use, and his parents for failing to supervise the children and exercise ordinary care.

The Illinois Jury Instruction manual defines the concept of “ordinary care” like so:

“A minor is not held to the same standard of conduct as an adult. When I use the words ‘ordinary care’ with respect to the [defendant], I mean that degree of care which a reasonably careful person of the age, mental capacity and experience of the [defendant] would use under the circumstances similar to those shown by the evidence. The law does not say how such a person would act under those circumstances. That is for you to decide.”

When you put the care of your child in the hands of another parent, you have every right to expect that your child will come home feeling safe and well cared for. When parents who should be supervising children’s activity fail in their duty to exercise reasonable care, minors can become injured.

It is a shame when preventable situations like the one described cause injury to minors, but unfortunately, they do happen. If your child has become injured as a result of another parent or adult supervisor’s negligence, it may be time to take legal action.

With decades of experience, the attorneys of Williamson, Webster, Falb & Glisson are licensed to handle such cases across the St. Louis metropolitan area, in both Illinois and Missouri. Our attorneys will handle your claims with care and pursue every avenue possible to obtain recoveries of medical bills, pain and suffering, and other relevant damages.

In times like these, you deserve a team of attorneys on your side that you can trust. Contact us today for a free consultation.