Iowa City accident resulted in a fight afterwards. What legal actions can the victim take?

While car accidents are always stressful, sometimes the situation escalates and additional problems are caused beyond the collision itself. Multiple civil and criminal cases may be filed against the person at fault if they take additional actions that are illegal. The victim in these situations can file a civil lawsuit regardless of the disposition of the criminal charges. 

An accident near Interstate 80 in Iowa City will also carry criminal charges for one of the drivers involved. He attempted to fight with the other person involved in the crash and was arrested.

One driver is arrested for assault after a local car accident  

The situation began when two vehicles collided near the intersections of North Dodge Street and Interstate 80 just north of Iowa City in the afternoon. The arrest report states that the suspect then left his vehicle immediately. He began to approach the other car involved while the second driver remained seated inside. The suspect then reached into the victim’s car, grabbed him by the shirt collar, and punched him in the area of the face and head.  

The police investigation showed that the victim had redness in the collarbone area, and his shirt was ripped in multiple places. The suspect claimed that he only hit the driver of the other vehicle involved because he believed that he might be hit first. 

The suspect was charged with assault causing bodily injury, and taken into custody to be transported to Johnson County Jail. He was a 63 year old male from Illinois and he has also been told to avoid any contact with the victim. 

Negligence and intentional torts

There are two types of tort law claims in this situation following the accident. One is for negligence and the other is for an intentional tort related to the assault. The defendant may be both charged criminally and also face financial consequences in civil court. 

Negligence is the area of tort law that says any person or business that makes a mistake and causes injuries or property damage should have to pay for those damages. The damages are the total costs for things like repairs, lost wages, and medical bills.

Intentional torts overlap with many crimes. They are a civil way of making people accountable for harm they have caused through actions like assault, battery, kidnapping, and theft. Damages can be calculated in a similar way to negligence for all tort law claims. 

Get assistance from a lawyer who can explain more about civil lawsuits

Attorneys who practice in the Iowa City area handle all kinds of accident cases on a regular basis. Eells and Tronvold Law Offices is a firm that is available to help after a motor vehicle accident or any other type of injury.