CHICO, CA : Yuba City trucker sued over role in Hwy. 99 crash on Thursday, January 19th 2017

A Yuba City trucker has been sued for his alleged role in a fatal crash last year on Highway 99 north of Chico.
The wrongful-death lawsuit, filed Wednesday in Butte County Superior Court, alleges negligence on the part of the trucker, Ranjeet Thind, in a head-on crash that killed Eric Thomas, 53, of Oroville.
The lawsuit was filed on behalf of Thomas' family. It seeks unspecified damages in excess of $25,000.
Thind and the Yuba City trucking company Northwest Freightway are named as defendants.
It was unclear whether Thind has hired an attorney.
A case management conference has been scheduled for July 14 in Chico.
According to the California Highway Patrol, the crash happened at about 2:30 p.m. Aug. 2 on Highway 99 in the area of Mallard Estates Road, north of Meridian Road.
Thind was northbound in a 2015 Kenworth big rig and swerved into the oncoming southbound lane, striking a pickup driven by Thomas, according to the CHP.
The pickup then caught fire with Thomas trapped inside. Thomas died at the scene.
CHP officers have previously said that Thind may not have noticed that traffic had slowed ahead of him, leading him to swerve into the oncoming lane.
Just before the crash, the CHP said, a vehicle had been preparing to make a left turn toward Mallard Estates, causing northbound traffic to slow.
Thind, who was 29 at the time of the crash, wasn't hurt.
The CHP said at the time that it did not appear alcohol or drugs were a factor in the collision. No arrests were made.
Thind has not been charged with a crime.

Source :
Yuba City trucker sued over role in Hwy. 99 crash