Relatives of a family killed in the multi-car crash
in western Nebraska in September are suing the truck driver who allegedly caused the crash.
The wrongful death lawsuit was filed by the parents of Christopher and Diana Schmidt, of Gaithersburg, Md., who died in the chain-reaction crash along with their two children and unborn baby.
Authorities believe Josef
Slezak, a Chicago-area trucker whose
tractor-trailer hit the car stopped on the Interstate may
have fallen asleep before the accident.
A Nebraska state trooper testified in
Cheyenne County Court that Slezak had been on duty for nearly 15 hours before the crash.
Traffic was stopped on the interstate because of a different accident that occurred just a little further up the road. Slezak's truck hit the car driven by
Christopher Schmidt whose car was then pushed into the vehicle that was carrying his wife and children. Slezak reportedly did not slow down before hitting Christopher Schmidt's car.
Slezak is also charged with four counts of manslaughter and five counts of vehicular homicide. A hearing is set for Nov. 7.
