Family of Las Vegas bicyclist killed in crash files lawsuit

A twelvemonth aft 5 bicyclists were killed successful a clang southbound of Las Vegas by an impaired motortruck driver, a household filed a wrongful decease lawsuit.

Donna Trauger, on with lad Thomas Trauger Jr. and girl Sarah Woolsey, filed the suit Monday against Jordan Barson, the motortruck operator sentenced successful the crash, Barson’s employer, RoadRunner Transport AZ, and respective corporations that partnered successful leasing the motortruck to the company.

The suit was besides filed against David Merrill, an escort operator who joined the bicyclists to transportation supplies successful a 2019 Subaru Outback.

Donna Trauger’s husband, Tom Trauger, 57, was among 7 bicyclists who rode down the Subaru erstwhile Barson, who had 9 times the ineligible bounds of methamphetamine successful his system, swerved onto the shoulder, pinning the bicyclists against the SUV. Erin Michelle Ray, 39; Gerrard Suarez Nieva, 41; Michael Todd Murray, 57 and Aksoy Ahmet, 48 besides were killed.

The suit showed Trauger and her children are represented by attorneys Robert and Tracy Eglet and Danielle Miller.

The attorneys argued Barson and the motortruck companies who allowed him to thrust “owed a work of attraction to the Decedent THOMAS C. TRAUGER, to run their vehicles successful a tenable and harmless manner,” the attorneys wrote. “Defendant, DAVID FRANKLIN MERRILL, breached his work of attraction portion operating the information escort vehicle, a 2019 Subaru Outback, by, among different things, failing to decently travel Decedent THOMAS C. TRAUGER to guarantee his visibility and safety.”

Trauger is seeking compensation from each of the 10 defendants for her grief and sorrow, her husband’s nonaccomplishment of life, nonaccomplishment of aboriginal net and ceremonial expenses.

Former Chief Deputy District Attorney Thomas Moskal, who prosecuted Barson, said body camera video from the Dec. 10, 2020, clang country shows troopers missing signs that Barson was nether the power of meth.

Barson was sentenced successful June to 16 to 40 years successful prison.

Donna Trauger said Tuesday nighttime that she could not speech astir the case, but she said her goals haven’t changed implicit the past year: Do not fto her husband’s decease beryllium meaningless.

“They mislaid their lives, and I don’t privation that to spell unnoticed, to spell without meaning,” she said. “I attraction precise overmuch that there’s immoderate justice.”

Attempts to scope defendants precocious Tuesday were unsuccessful.

Contact Sabrina Schnur astatine sschnur@reviewjournal.com oregon 702-383-0278. Follow @sabrina_schnur connected Twitter.