A $10 million lawsuit by a Georgia man who says he was badly injured when his pickup was struck by a semi driven for an amusement rides company has been transferred to federal court in Georgia.
The suit, first filed June 6 in Muscogee County Superior Court in Georgia, moved to the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Georgia on Friday, according to documents in the case.
The suit alleges a truck driven by James Lawrence Butcher for Awesome Amusements Inc. “suddenly, and without warning of any kind” rear-ended plaintiff Jeffery Watson’s vehicle on March 27, 2023, on I-16 west of Savannah after Watson slowed because of traffic.
Awesome Amusements is based in Florence, South Carolina.
Watson’s head struck and shattered his pickup’s back window, and he suffered a range of injuries, the lawsuit states. The Columbus, Georgia, man is now disabled, has required “extensive medical care, surgeries, and therapy costing hundreds of thousands of dollars,” and will need further care moving forward.
Butcher, of Eureka, California, was following too closely, speeding and “engaged in activities that distracted him,” according to the lawsuit, which also names Awesome Amusements and Connecticut-based T.H.E. Insurance Co. The suit claims that another defendant, listed only as “John Doe,” may have contributed to the accident because his truck ran out of fuel, resulting in a blocked travel lane on I-16 at Exit 143.
The suit seeks $10 million plus legal fees and punitive damages.
Awesome Amusements and Butcher previously asked that the case be dismissed because of an improper service process, according to court filings.
FreightWaves reached out Tuesday to the law firm of Cruser, Mitchell, Novitz, Sanchez, Gaston & Zimet, which is representing Awesome Amusements and Butcher, for comment.
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