The owner of a landscaping company was recently sentenced to 10 months in prison after an unsecured one-ton boulder flew off his pickup truck and struck another vehicle. The accident occurred back in July 2018 in Rosemount, a city located just a few minutes away from Minneapolis. Inside the vehicle that was hit by the boulder was 67-year-old Karen Christiansen and her 32-year-old daughter Jena, both of which did not survive the accident.
According to CBSN Minnesota, Joe Czeck, owner of Czeck Services, had been driving one of his commercial vehicles near Rich Valley Boulevard and 125th Street in Rosemount when a 1,100-pound boulder fell from the bed of his truck and hit the Christiansen’s vehicle. The source said that Czeck left the scene of the accident but was arrested two days later. Czeck and the surviving family members of Karen and Jena Christiansen recently appeared in court in January 2020 where Czeck was sentenced.
During the sentencing, family members were given the opportunity to present emotional statements regarding their loss. Greg Christiansen had this to say, “They were my wife and my daughter I love them dearly. “I miss them every day, every day.” Czeck also had an opportunity to speak during the hearing and apologized to the victims’ family saying “the pain your family is feeling will be with me for the rest of my life. I hope someday you can forgive me.”
The news source said that Czeck will have to serve six months in jail starting immediately, then will be given two months off, and will then have to serve four months in work release. He also received 10 years’ probation. Apparently, Czeck received the lighter sentence “as a part of a plea deal that the victims’ family agreed to.” Being the sole provider for his disabled daughter, the family supported the reduced sentence to help Czeck so that he would still be able to care for and provide for his daughter.
What to do when your family member is killed in an accident in Minneapolis, MN?
While accepting the loss isn’t something that can be done overnight, what you can do is begin to take steps that will allow you to obtain the justice you and your family deserve. And it starts with contacting a Minneapolis, MN accident lawyer. When a person has been killed in a car or truck accident in Minneapolis, MN that was caused by someone else’s negligence, you can file a wrongful death lawsuit on their behalf.
Filing a wrongful death lawsuit in Minnesota will not only help you to recognize the individual for their reckless behavior, but also bring you closer to recovering compensation that could help you and your family afford all the unexpected expenses you have been faced with. If you lost a family member recently in an accident, the Minneapolis, MN accident attorneys at The Law Office of Martin T. Montilino are available to provide you with the legal advice and guidance you might be needing. You can contact this firm now by calling 612-236-1320.