Stephenson County, IL — November 10, 2024, a Freeport man was killed as the result of a semi-truck accident that happened around 11:45 p.m. on Illinois Route 26.

According to initial details about the accident, it happened off the corner of IL-26 and Winneshiek Road, just north of Freeport.

Investigators said that a 35-year-old Freeport man was in a Dodge Neon that was going southbound along the highway. For reasons which are not clear right now, the Dodge and an oncoming semi-truck collided. Due to the crash, the Freeport man was killed. No injuries were rpeorted.

At this time, additional details about the crash are unavailable.

Commentary

One of my concerns following accidents like this is that the victim isn't around to give their side of the story. Sometimes, authorities base too much of their investigations on statements from people at the scene. If one person is dead and there are few or no witnesses, that can lead to one-sided or outright misleading stories.

I had one case, for example, where out independent investigations into a crash revealed a truck driver lied to police. Authorities initially blamed the victim for crossing the center line. The evidence, though, showed the truck initially crossed over, and the victim swerved to the left to avoid the truck. However, the truck veered back into its original lane, leading to the collision.

I'm not suggesting anything about what may have led to this particular crash. But the above example shows why it's important to know what authorities looked into and how they came to their conclusions. If they can provide answers backed by clear evidence, that's good. But if it seems there are too many gaps in the story, it's only reasonable a family might want a second opinion.