Chicago, IL – August 7, 2017 – Hunter Wolfe, 17, of Streator, IL, tragically died Monday, July 17, 2017, while participating in a work/study program at Luckey Transfer, LLC, 918 Porter St., Streator IL. The Livingston County, IL, Coroner Danny Watson completed an autopsy on Tuesday, July 18, 2017. The Coroner stated that electrocution was the preliminary cause of death, but a final determination is not expected for several weeks. Company employees found Wolfe unresponsive and alone on the ground, next to a rail car beneath Commonwealth Edison power lines. The Streator Police Department, Livingston County Coroner’s Office, and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) are involved in the investigation.
On August 7, 2017, Anesi Ozmon, Rodin, Novak & Kohen, Ltd. (Anesi Ozmon) filed a lawsuit in Cook County (Case Number 2017L7956) against Commonwealth Edison Company, Norfolk Southern Railway Corporation, Luckey Transfer, LLC, Luckey Logistics, LLC, and Chamlin & Associates, Inc. Wolfe’s parents Nikki Lynn Rambo and Erik Bart Wolfe retained Anesi Ozmon to represent the family. Anesi Ozmon President and Managing Partner Mark Novak, along with partners Brian Teven and Steven Berman, will be handling the case. Hunter would have entered his senior year at Streator Township High School in mid-August.
“Hunter’s death leaves a huge void in our family and our community,” stated Nikki Rambo. “We decided to turn our anger and emotions into action. No parent should get a call that their child died while continuing their education. Whatever happened to our son needs to be explored so that other families do not have to suffer our pain and grief.”
“Hunter wanted to be an ironworker like his uncles and grandfather or a heavy equipment operator,” stated Erik Wolfe. “He could have gotten a summer job in a grocery store or fast food place, but he wanted to do more. He planned to do the work/study program during his senior year in High School, and then attend trade school. This wasn’t a kid who sat around and played video games. He always worked hard. He was pursuing his dream.”
“This was an unspeakable tragedy which so easily could have been avoided,” according to attorney Mark Novak. “To send a 17-year-old child on top of a railroad tank car, without proper training and without a partner, in close proximity to overhead power lines was unconscionable. Hunter’s parents have retained Anesi Ozmon to investigate all of the facts and circumstances surrounding his death and to seek justice on their behalf against those responsible for the loss of their child. Hunter’s parents also want to make sure that no other child is ever put in this type of ultra-hazardous situation again.”
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The law firm of Anesi Ozmon, Rodin, Novak & Kohen Ltd., is located at 161 North Clark Street, Suite 2100, Chicago, IL 60601. Find more information at ANESILAW.COM.