Alabama Firefighter's Mother Sues Trucking Firm, Drivers in Crash Death of Son

By Jim Greene

Published on January 26, 2006

Chris Roy, 25, was killed Nov. 28 near Calera, Ala., about 35 miles south of Birmingham. According to Alabama State Troopers' spokesperson Sgt. Tim Sartain, a tractor-trailer driven by Ronald Musgrave and a dump truck driven by Mitchell Roper entered a highway intersection on a green light at the same time as the fire truck. He said the light was red for the fire truck, but that Roy was using flashing lights and sirens. Sartain said the fire truck and the tractor-trailer collided, but the dump truck cleared the intersection without making contact. Neither Musgrave nor Roper was injured.

Joyce Roy filed a $12 million wrongful death suit in Shelby County Circuit Court against Musgrave, Roper, and Star Transport of Illinois, owners of the tractor-trailer. The suit claims Roy's death was caused because the defendants "negligently caused or negligently allowed their vehicles to be operated in such a manner that they pulled out into the path of the oncoming emergency vehicle."

Sartain said the crash was being investigated as a possible traffic-related homicide. He said it was a reminder that drivers need to be aware of their responsibility to yield to emergency vehicles.

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