A civil lawsuit was recently filed against the driver of a vehicle that caused a fatal car accident back in October 2016. The suit itself was filed by James and Elaine Dupler, the parents of the crash victim, James Dupler. James was only 21 at the time of the accident, and in their wrongful death lawsuit, his parents accused the driver, Jack Kaplan, of negligence. In addition to naming Kaplan as a defendant in the case, the lawsuit also names “his parents and their own insurance company,” according to court documents.
A civil lawsuit was recently filed against the driver of a vehicle that caused a fatal car accident back in October 2016. The suit itself was filed by James and Elaine Dupler, the parents of the crash victim, James Dupler. James was only 21 at the time of the accident, and in their wrongful death lawsuit, his parents accused the driver, Jack Kaplan, of negligence. In addition to naming Kaplan as a defendant in the case, the lawsuit also names “his parents and their own insurance company,” according to court documents.
Earlier this month Kaplan, who has also been accused of reckless homicide in addition to negligence, “appeared for an initial hearing in Boone Superior Court I” in relation to the accident. During that hearing, he “entered initial pleas of not guilty” and a tentative jury trial date is scheduled for September 11 of this year.
So what happened? How did the accident happen? Well, according to investigators from the Boone County Fatal Alcohol Crash Team, “Kaplan crashed into a tree while driving under the influence of alcohol, removed Dupler from the passenger seat and left him lying on the ground next to the driver’s side of the vehicle.” From there, Kaplan allegedly sat “in the passenger side of the vehicle to await help.” It should be noted, however, that instead of calling 911 for assistance, Kaplan called his father and waited for him to “arrive at the crash and call the police,” according to court documents. When emergency responders arrived they “found Kaplan in his father’s vehicle and Dupler on the ground near the driver’s side of the Ford Explorer at County Road 300 South.”
At the end of the day, investigators determined that “it took 26 minutes from the time he called his father to when his father called 911,” and that the two Kaplan’s “had about 20 minutes alone at the crash site before emergency responders arrived within seven minutes of the father’s call.”
Upon arriving at the scene, emergency personnel quickly transported Dupler to St. Vincent Hospital, a trauma center in Indianapolis. Unfortunately, he arrived too late and succumbed to his injuries two and a half hours after the accident. According to reports from his attending physician, Dupler “had several injuries, including a non-survivable traumatic head injury.”
In their lawsuit, the Dupler’s allege that “as a direct and proximate result of the defendant’s negligence, James Dupler lost his life.” Additionally, as a result of James’ death, his parents “incurred expenses for his medical care, burial and attorney fees” on top of having to endure the loss of “his love and companionship.”
The lawsuit also alleges that “Jack Kaplan had an ongoing history of drug and alcohol abuse and was under the custody of David Kaplan and J.J. Kaplan at the time of the incident.” Because of this, the Dupler’s argue that Kaplan’s parents “are liable for damage done by their child’s negligence if the parent entrusts the child with an instrumentality which, because of the child’s lack of age, judgment or experience, may become a source of danger to others.” According to court documents, the vehicle Jack Kaplan drove the night of the accident was registered under his father’s name.
To date, Kaplan has been charged with the following:
“Failure to remain at the scene of an accident, reckless homicide, failure to remain at the scene of an accident resulting in death, causing death when operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated, causing death when operating a vehicle with a blood-alcohol content of 0.08 or more, obstruction of justice, operating a vehicle while intoxicated endangering a person, operating a vehicle while intoxicated, and public intoxication.”
The Dupler’s are seeking “financial compensation commensurate with the injuries and damages, for the cost of this action, for prejudgment interest, attorney fees, punitive damages where appropriate and or all other relief just and proper,” according to the lawsuit.
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