Police Continue to Investigate Deadly Kalamazoo Crash Involving Illegally Parked Semi-Trailer
As the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety continues to release new details about the deadly accident that killed a 28-year-old male driver who crashed into a parked semi-trailer picking up vehicles from Seeyle Auto Group, investigators are yet to determine fault. KDPS Lt. Craig Hable said many witnesses had reported seeing the driver swerve along the road before he crashed into the semi-truck and that the driver had created chaos on the street for approaching vehicles.
In a statement from Seeyle Auto Group, the semi was parked and picking up a vehicle from the group’s dealership on Stadium Driven when the driver “ignored Seeyle’s policies for dropping off and picking up cargo in a safe location behind their property. The driver of the semi-truck, in this instance, ignored the option of unloading in a clearly marked, safe, drop off point on the private lot off of Stadium Drive and instead opted to stop in the middle of the intersection.”
As of May 22, KDPS were still waiting on autopsy results and a toxicology report, but they confirmed the semi driver was parked illegally in the center lane, something many local residents and travelers say they observe regularly outside of Seeyle Auto Group.
Our attorneys recently shared a post on Michigan’s No-Fault Parked Vehicle Exception Law but traffic safety specialist with Michigan State Police, Special First Lieutenant Jim Flegel, reported to many local news outlets that in general, no car can legally park in the center of a roadway via Michigan’s Vehicle Code.
MICHIGAN VEHICLE CODE (EXCERPT)
Act 300 of 1949
257.672 Stopping, parking or leaving vehicle upon paved or main traveled part of highway or upon paved or unpaved part of limited access highway; violation as civil infraction.
Sec. 672.
(1) Outside of the limits of a city or village, a vehicle shall not be stopped, parked, or left standing, attended or unattended, upon the paved or main traveled part of a highway, when it is possible to stop, park, or to leave the vehicle off the paved or main traveled part of the highway. Inside or outside of the limits of a city or village, a vehicle shall not be stopped, parked, or left standing, attended or unattended, upon the paved or unpaved part of a limited access highway, except in an emergency or mechanical difficulty. This section shall apply to the stopping of school buses pursuant to the pupil transportation act.
(2) A person who violates this section is responsible for a civil infraction.
We are saddened for the crash victim’s family and hope they are provided the support necessary during this difficult time. We will continue to update our online community as additional information about any known accident risks on Stadium Drive come abreast, so Michigan drivers can travel safely. Our attorneys plan to review news of autopsy details that will help determine fault and what charges, if any, could be made against the driver (or employer) of the semi-truck or the auto dealer.
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