Overview
- The families filed a wrongful-death lawsuit in Sangamon County Court over the April 2025 crash at the YNOT After School Camp in Chatham that killed four children and an 18-year-old counselor and injured several others.
- The complaint says the 2012 building violated an Illinois rule that barred permanent youth camp facilities from being within 100 feet of a highway, alleging the site sat closer to busy County Highway 5A.
- Plaintiffs also allege the property lacked effective barriers to stop a vehicle, noting four concrete bollards near the entrance and loading dock left areas where children gathered without protection.
- The suit names the camp, driver Marianne Akers, and parties tied to the building’s construction, while listing the Village of Chatham only to provide information rather than seek damages.
- Police reported Akers was not impaired, prosecutors filed no criminal charges, and her attorney has said she suffered a seizure before the crash, as the families’ lawyers plan a news conference to press for reforms.