In Bloomington, Illinois, last week, a motorcycle accident left one man dead after he struck a grain wagon. According to the sheriff, the grain wagon did not have the right lights to be on the road and the sign warning motorists of a slow-moving vehicle was heavily faded. The man driving the grain wagon was issued a citation for the light problem after the accident.

However, also contributing to the accident was the fact that the motorcyclist had been drinking. According to the sheriff, the motorcyclist's blood alcohol content was over the legal limit. Criminal charges are not going to be filed against the grain wagon driver, according to a news report.

However, if it is true that the wagon's poor lighting contributed to the accident, the deceased motorcyclist's family might still be able to seek civil damages.

In Illinois, the court uses comparative negligence laws when calculating damages. Comparative negligence means that the court will diminish a plaintiff's damages based on how much the plaintiff was at fault for the incident. If the court finds that the plaintiff was 10 percent at fault for the accident, the court will then reduce the plaintiff's award by the amount of 10 percent.

In Illinois, however, a plaintiff cannot be more than 50 percent at fault for an accident; if a plaintiff is found to be more than 50 percent at fault, he or she cannot recover any damages. In the present case, it would be necessary to determine precisely how much of a factor the motorcyclist's blood alcohol content was in the crash.

Source: Pantagraph.com, "Motorcyclist, pedestrian deaths ruled accidents," Edith Brady-Lunny, Jan. 31, 2012