Personal Injury Law Blog
Wrongful Death Lawsuit Settled in Hit-and-Run Case
The family of a Naperville woman killed in a hit-and-run collision has settled a lawsuit against the driver.
Melissa Lech was killed in August 2008 when she was hit by a car while walking on McDonough Street in Joliet, Illinois. David McCarthy IV allegedly went to the home of Lech’s sister in February 2012 to confess that he was the driver. The family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against him that summer.
In February of this year, the family filed a petition saying that they would like to accept a $250,000 settlement offer, and the case was settled for that amount. Maria Lech, the victim’s mother, will receive $170,008.24 after attorney fees are paid.
When McCarthy confessed to Lech’s sister, three and a half years after the accident, he was arrested the same day and has been held in the county jail since then, with bail set at $1 million. McCarthy has a court appearance on June 27 in his criminal case.
The hit-and-run case garnered local media attention, with NASCAR driver Kevin Conway featuring a plea for information along with Melissa Lech’s photo on his car during a race at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet in September 2011.
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