CTA BUS HITS A LIGHT POLE
A CTA bus hit a light pole this morning near 25th and Ashland in Chicago. According to news reports, eleven people were transported to area hospitals. It is not clear if the victims were passengers or pedestrians.
In my experience as a Chicago personal injury attorney who has handled a variety of bus accident cases, investigating the incident is critical in developing a successful case against the CTA. The CTA often has investigators on the scene immediately after an incident to take pictures and canvas witnesses. Attorneys should be proactive in the discovery process to obtain documents and materials that support their clients' lawsuits.
I strongly believe that investigation results are discoverable and admissible at trial. An article that I wrote on this topic for the Illinois Bar Journal,"Revisiting Bulger v. CTA: The Case for Admitting Transportation Company Investigation Results," Vol. 92 (April 2004), discusses why these inter-company originated documents should be discoverable and admitted.
