Grandfather sues grandson for Niles crash that killed wife
CHICAGO (Sun-Times Media Wire) - A grandfather has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against his grandson for a crash in March that killed the boy’s grandmother in north suburban Niles.
About 9 p.m. March 26, 79-year-old Kuem Soon Cho gave the keys to her 2005 Chrysler minivan to her 13-year-old grandson to help her place the minivan in gear in a parking lot in the 9200 block of Maryland Street, Niles police said at the time.
The grandson shifted the vehicle in reverse and his foot accidentally hit the gas pedal instead of the brake, police said. Cho was walking up to open the driver’s side door at the time and was struck by the minivan.
Cho, who lived on the same block as the crash, was pronounced dead at Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge later that evening, according to the Cook County medical examiner’s office. An autopsy ruled her death an accident.
On Friday, Cho’s husband, Paul Sang Cho, filed a wrongful death suit in Cook County Circuit Court that accused his grandson of negligence.
The grandson carelessly failed to keep the vehicle under control, failed to give warning and failed to yield the right of way, the suit said.
The one-count suit seeks an unspecified amount of money.