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A woman was killed by a driver while crossing the street in downtown Kansas City in 2023. After years of mediation, her family has now obtained a $3 million settlement.
The woman was crossing at a four-way stop at a crosswalk but had a “do not walk” sign when the defendant, who was driving an F-250 truck, struck her. He continued driving after the impact and she died at the scene due to a crushed chest cavity.
The confidential plaintiff was represented by Nicholas Hinrichs and Heather Hatley of the Hinrichs & Scott Law Firm, as well as Tracy Spradlin of the Spradlin Kennedy Richman Law Firm; all were based in Kansas City. The defense attorney was listed as confidential and the plaintiff’s counsel did not return a request for comment.
“Detectives during their investigation were ultimately able to find out the identity of the driver and attempted to interview him back (at his) home in independence, Missouri,” Hinrichs wrote in his submission of the settlement. “He refused to cooperate.”
During the civil case, the driver claimed he never saw the woman due to his line of sight, the size of his truck and the victim’s small stature. She was 105 lbs at the time of the crash and he claimed he did not feel a significant impact on the vehicle, Hinrichs wrote. The defense said the victim had methamphetamine in her system when she was killed and used this as a mitigating factor to claim she carelessly walked out in front of traffic.
Countering this claim, Hinrichs said his team argued the woman was in the driver’s clear line of sight and if he had been paying attention, she would still be alive.
The drugs in her system had no impact on causing the accident and a traffic camera recorded the impact, clearly showing she took her time and looked both ways before crossing, he added.
“It doesn’t matter if a person is homeless or suffers from addiction issues. Every person’s life has value regardless of social status,” Hinrichs said. “Everyone jaywalks. When you drive a vehicle you have a responsibility to pedestrians. You have to keep a careful look out especially at crosswalks.”
The plaintiff’s attorneys relied on two expert witnesses during the mediation and settlement process while the defense called six.
The case ultimately settled in November of last year for $3 million which will be given to her adult children.
Amount of verdict, judgment or settlement: $3,000,000
Type of action: Wrongful death
Venue: Jackson County Circuit Court at Independence
Case Number/Date: Confidential/11/25/2025
Plaintiffs’ Experts: Dr. Kyle Harken a trauma and critical care expert from Kansas City & Dr. Ameet Deshukh an emergency medicine specialist.
Defendants’ Experts: Liz Rapp Van Roden Ph.D. a bio mechanical engineer from Irvine, California; Kristian Keberlein an accident reconstruction specialist from Stillwell, Kansas; Barbara Bollinger, MD a forensic pathologist from Fort Pierce, Florida; Micheal McCabe, Jr., Ph.D a pharmacology and toxicology expert from Houston, Texas; Jack Nevins, CCE, EnCE, PI a digital forensics expert from Liberty, Missouri & David Cades a human factors specialist from Chicago.
Injuries: Death
Caption: Confidential
Plaintiffs’ Attorneys: Nicholas Hinrichs & Heather Hatley of the Hinrichs & Scott Law Firm in Kansas City and Tracy Spradlin of the Spradlin Kennedy Richman Law Firm in Kansas City.
Defendants’ Attorneys: Confidential
