Milwaukee, WI — February 18, 2025, one person was killed in a truck accident at about 12:30 p.m. on West Brown Deer Road/Alternate U.S. Route 41.

Authorities said a semi-truck collided with another vehicle near the intersection at North 76th Street. Emergency crews were called in to lift the truck's trailer off of the other vehicle.

One man died in the crash, according to authorities. His name has not been made public at this time.

Authorities have not released any additional information about the crash. The accident is still under investigation.

Commentary by Attorney Michael Grossman

Crashes where a semi-truck ends up on top of another vehicle raise serious questions about speed, braking and visibility. While details are still limited, investigators should be looking beyond the moment of impact to determine what led to this collision and whether it could have been avoided.

One key issue is how the truck and the other vehicle ended up in the same space at the same time. Did one of them run a red light? Did traffic suddenly slow down, leaving the truck with no time to stop? Intersection crashes often involve split-second decisions, and those moments need to be carefully analyzed using black box data, traffic cameras and witness statements.

Another factor that deserves scrutiny is the truck’s braking and speed. Trucks take significantly longer to stop than passenger vehicles, especially if they’re heavily loaded. If the truck driver was going too fast for conditions or following too closely, that could explain why they weren’t able to avoid a collision. Investigators should check black box data to determine whether the driver attempted to brake and how quickly they reacted.

The fact that emergency crews had to lift the truck’s trailer off the other vehicle is also concerning. That suggests an override crash, where a truck either rolls over a smaller vehicle or comes to rest on top of it. These kinds of crashes can be linked to braking failures, poor visibility or a lack of underride protection on the truck. Investigators should determine whether the truck’s equipment — such as brakes, tires and underride guards — was in proper working order at the time of the crash.

At this stage, there are still many unknowns, but a thorough investigation should go beyond just assigning blame. It should consider every possible contributing factor to ensure that any preventable causes are identified and addressed.