Dot Foods is being sued along with the truck driver who crashed into trooper, Kyle Deatherage, in November, killing him. The defendant argued that the case has no connection to Madison County and should be heard in Montgomery County where the accident occurred.

The plaintiff, Sarah Deatherage, argued that the defendant had failed to show that plaintiff’s choice of venue was improper. The plaintiff’s attorney said that Dot Foods and its subsidiary Dot Transportation moved nearly $130 million worth of goods from warehouses in Madison County during the last four years. The plaintiff argued that the defendant failed to prove that it does not do business in the county for the purposes of venue.

According to the plaintiff, Kyle Deatherage worked and resided in Madison County and his family has the right to file the lawsuit there.

The lawsuit seeks damages for grief, depression and mental anguish for Sarah Deatherage and her two children. According to the complaint, Dot Foods negligently hired a truck driver who the company knew was a danger, and the driver operated the truck when he was not fit to do so, due to an unspecified medical condition.

Bob Briskman is a wrongful death lawyer in Chicago, IL with Briskman Briskman & Greenberg. To learn more call 1.877.595.4878 or visit http://www.briskmanandbriskman.com/.

Johnny Felton Jr. was driving a truck for Dot Transportation along Interstate 55 outside of Litchfield, Illinois in November when he struck and killed officer Kyle Deatherage, who was 32 years old and the father of two small children. Montgomery County state prosecutors have charged Felton with reckless homicide and operating a tractor-trailer in violation of his driver’s license restrictions that prohibited him from operating a commercial vehicle outside the state of Georgia.

Deatherage’s widow has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Felton’s employer, claiming that Dot Transportation must have been aware that Felton was not licensed to operate a commercial vehicle in Illinois and that Felton should not have driven the truck due to an unspecified medical condition. In January, the U.S. Department of Transportation issued a citation to Dot Transportation for knowingly permitting Felton to drive a commercial vehicle without a proper license.

According to Dot Transportation, Felton had held an interstate license for most of the five years he was employed by the company, but in July when he renewed his license, he checked a box for “intrastate” rather than “interstate,” thus unknowingly restricting his license. Dot Transportation is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Dot Foods, which is based in Mt. Sterling, Illinois and describes itself as the country’s largest food redistributor.

Dot Foods is seeking to transfer the wrongful death lawsuit from Madison County to Montgomery County, where the accident took place.

Paul Greenberg is a Chicago wrongful death lawyer with Briskman Briskman & Greenberg. To learn more call 1.877.595.4878 or visit http://www.briskmanandbriskman.com/.

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