Porter County, IN — October 15, 2025, Jeffery Eberly was killed as the result of a semi-truck accident that happened around 1:25 p..m. on US 20.

Authorities said in preliminary statements that the accident happened near the intersection of US 20 and Douglas Drive.

According to current reports, 54-year-old Jeff Eberly was in a Subaru going westbound on US 20. In the eastbound lanes, it appears a van slowed down to make a left turn. A semi-truck approaching from behind allegedly passed the stopped van by going into oncoming lanes. There, it crashed with Jeff Eberly.

Jeff Eberly reportedly died due to the accident. Authorities arrested the truck driver, who they allege didn't have a valid commercial driver's license. Additional details surrounding the accident remain under investigation.

Commentary

There are still more questions than answers here, however it obviously stands out that, according to reports, this driver wasn't supposed to be behind the wheel of a commercial truck. In my experience, that is rarely some isolated mistake.

More often than not, someone higher up the chain puts an unlicensed driver behind the wheel of a semi. It's sometimes the result of sheer negligence, as some companies neglect to ensure drivers are properly qualified before hiring them. Other times, a company might know about the issue and elect to ignore it just to get product moving.

Whatever happened here, just charging the allegedly at fault truck driver alone might not be enough to truly see accountability for this accident. There's a family out there that deserves to know whether or not anyone else played a role in the victim's death. Accountability means ensuring all wrongdoers answer for their actions.