Family of girl killed in Lexington crash files suit against woman accused of causing it
The family of a little girl who died after a crash in Lexington last summer has filed a wrongful death suit against the alleged drunk driver who caused the crash and the owner of the car she was driving.
The parents of Alexia Gomez Hernandez filed the suit in Fayette Circuit Court against the driver, Sequoyah Collins, and Jose Paredes-Serrano, the registered owner of the Lexus.
Collins was driving early July 5 when police say she ran a red light while speeding and hit a car at Tates Creek Road and Lansdowne Drive.
Alexia, 10, a passenger in the car Collins hit, died at University of Kentucky Chandler Hospital about four hours after the crash. Alexia’s mother, Maricruz Hernandez Romero, and three children, one of whom was Alexia’s brother, were injured, the lawsuit states.
Police have said the children ranged from 9 to 12 years old, and one had a broken femur and hip while another had a broken femur.
Collins, police said, had a blood alcohol level of 0.211 — nearly three times the legal limit — when a blood alcohol test was administered four hours after the crash. She also had cocaine in her system, police said.
Collins has been indicted on charges of murder, assault and wanton endangerment.
Plaintiffs in the lawsuit filed Thursday include Alexia’s parents, her brother and two other children injured in the crash.
They claim negligence, wrongful death and loss of consortium caused by Collins.
The suit accuses Paredes-Serrano of negligent entrustment, claiming he should have known Collins wasn’t fit to drive his vehicle but allowed her to do so anyway.
The lawsuit seeks punitive damages, damages for wrongful death and pain and suffering, medical and funeral expenses and other damages
