When Philip Cho offered Kelsey Ibach and her friends a ride outside a River North nightclub, they accepted what they thought was a kind offer. Minutes later, allegedly drunk and driving over the speed limit, he crashed the vehicle and left the scene, abandoning his seriously injured passengers.
Ibach, 25 years old, is now paralyzed from the waist down, confined to a wheelchair, and in need of intensive rehab. Her family is suing Cho and the two nightclubs he visited before the accident. They have also sued Cho’s employer, an entertainment company.
According to reports, the speeding, intoxicated driver plunged his 2008 BMW through a fence and into a ditch below the road, where it landed on its roof. He then failed to summon help before fleeing the scene of the accident. A passing motorist found the wreck with two of its dazed passengers outside. One had a severed thumb and another was later found to have broken vertebrae. The most seriously injured, Ibach, was inside, trapped in the back seat, with broken ribs, a punctured lung, a blood clot on her brain, and a crushed spine and pelvis.
According to one report, he allegedly told the injured passengers to tell police he had been carjacked. When they pleaded with him to call an ambulance, he ignored them.
Cho is reported to have taken a cab to a location far from the scene. He was charged with failure to report an accident and other traffic offenses. He is currently out on bail, with a bond set at $200,000.
Ibach was a journalism student at the University of Michigan. Her friends have been raising money to help pay her medical bills, while she hopes to regain feeling in her legs and walk again.
Victims of any accident deserve compensation, particularly those involving reckless and wanton conduct. If you have been injured by the negligence or wrongdoing of others, you are entitled to seek damages for your injury, rehab expenses, and other costs. The experienced personal injury attorneys at Ryan, Ryan & Viglione have successfully represented clients in all types of automobile accident cases. For a free case consultation, call (847)244-1436 today.