The attorneys at Davis Law Group have successfully recovered a $4 million wrongful death settlement behalf of the surviving wife and child (unborn at the time of the accident) of the man who was killed after being struck by a street sweeper in Bellevue in February 2018.
A professional Christian singer and commercial truck driver, 44-year-old Alexandru Culai was killed on February 19, 2018 when he was struck by street sweeper vehicle in Bellevue. He left behind a wife who was eight months pregnant at the time of the incident, as well as two teenaged children. His now-toddler son never got the chance to meet his father.
Proving Liability In Spite Of Initial Police Investigation
The Bellevue Police Department initially determined that Mr. Culai was solely responsible for causing his own death when he walked into the path of the street sweeper. However, our attorneys felt that there were additional details that could paint a clearer picture of the events that unfolded on that day.
Attorney Chris Davis and other lawyers involved with the case were able to discover that the driver of the streetsweeper, LeRoy Westphal, was not properly trained to use the vehicle and that he failed to use the back-up camera when he struck and killed Mr. Culai.
In recent years there has been a sharp increase in the number of serious collisions involving street sweepers reported in the news media since 2010. Fourteen (14) incidents were reported in 2018, nine (9) in 2017 and fourteen (14) others in the previous five years.
Hiring Expert Witnesses Makes A Difference
The team of street sweeper accident attorneys at Davis Law Group consulted with a leading industry safety expert regarding the common causes of street sweeper accidents and the apparent rise in accidents involving street sweeper vehicles over the last few years. According to the expert, street sweeper accidents are typically the result of a lack of proper driver training; distracted drivers; high noise level inside the vehicle; or the lack of an operational or unobstructed rear-view camera.
The complaint for damages against Nelson & Sons Construction alleged that the driver failed to operate the street sweeper vehicle in a safe manner and failed to keep a proper lookout and/or watch the vehicle's backup camera. The case was filed in King County Superior Court (19-2-05894-3-SEA) and had been set for trial in March of 2020.
The insurance settlement will benefit Culai’s widow and 2-year-old son, who never got to meet his father, in addition to the two teen sons from a prior marriage. The victim's two teenage children by his first wife had other representation.
