$18 Million For Family Of Teenager Injured In Sauk Village Crash

SAUK VILLAGE, IL —An Indiana family was awarded $18 million in damages from two trucking companies Monday after a 2016 collision resulted in their then-teenage son being struck by a semi-tractor, leaving him with permanent brain damage.

Gustavo Cornejo Jr. was 17 when he and his father pulled off the shoulder of Interstate 394 in Sauk Village. The pair were inspecting their landscaping trailer's light, which appeared to be out on Sept. 27, 2016. While Gustavo and his father were standing on the side of the truck, another semi-trailer drove into the young boy, throwing him 30 feet.

Lawyers for the Cornejo family said Gustavo hit his head when he fell, causing a traumatic brain injury and brain bleeding. To this day, his mother told prosecutors in the civil suit that she takes care of him almost full-time.

Following the collision, Gustavo spent two weeks in a coma and another two weeks afterwards in the hospital. Of the $18 million awarded to the Gary, Indiana family, $3 million is designated for Gustavo's future medical care needs.

Lawyers said the driver came from two firms based in South Dakota and New Jersey. Representatives from Dakota Lines Trucking Company and Alliance Shipper Inc. could not be reached for comment Wednesday.