CHARLESTON — A tow-truck driver from West Virginia is GLS Leasco Inc. and and North Carolina-based truck driver Steven L. Barber, citing alleged negligence after a truck-pedestrian accident.
Roy D. Berry of Dawes filed a complaint on June 2 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia against the defendants, alleging that Barber negligently and recklessly operated a vehicle owned by GLS Leasco, striking the plaintiff.
According to the complaint, the plaintiff alleges that on Nov. 25, 2015, he lawfully parked an emergency wrecker vehicle on the northbound shoulder of Interstate 77 in Marmet. He went out of the vehicle to fix a loose strap on a vehicle he was towing, and used emergency flashers and lights to properly alert other motorists, the suit alleges. Defendant Barber drove a truck tractor on the northbound shoulder lane and hit the parked emergency wrecker, which hit the plaintiff, causing the plaintiff to be slammed against a metal guardrail barrier, the suit alleges. This resulted in serious and permanent injuries, according to the complaint. The plaintiff alleges that Barber is responsible because he failed to drive the truck tractor in the right lane, and also alleges that GLS Leasco failed to hire a qualified driver and to properly train him.
The plaintiff requests a trial by jury and seeks judgment in an amount that will fully and fairly compensate him for the damages resulting from the negligence, recklessness, carelessness, and other acts and omissions of the defendants; and further demands any and all further relief the court deems just and appropriate. He is represented by Charles M. Johnstone II and David A. Dobson of Johnstone & Gabhart LLP in Charleston.
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia Case number 2:16-cv-04995
