Family receives Kendall's largest death settlement

CHICAGO - The family of a Waubonsee Community College student, who was killed in an accident four years ago, has received a $2.8 million wrongful death settlement. The settlement with Jewel Foods, a defendant in the lawsuit, was approved Monday in Kendall County Circuit Court. Chicago Attorney Jeffrey Kroll said it is the largest wrongful death settlement in Kendall County history. “It is a reflection of the kind of woman Shannon Orr was,” he said. “She was a student, spent her free time working in her stepfather's dentist office, and was an aspiring dentist.” On April 23, 2004, Shannon Orr was driving on Illinois 126, near the intersection with Ridge Road in Kendall County, east of Yorkville and about 14 miles north of Minooka. When Orr stopped behind a cement truck, the driver of a Jewel semi-truck collided with the rear of her car. The impact pushed her car into the cement truck, the car burst into flames and she was killed. “A parent's worst nightmare is losing their child and knowing she suffered prior to death,” attorney Kroll said. “We were in mediation and one factor that influenced the settlement was what a wonderful woman she was.” Kendall County Judge Timothy McCann entered the order Monday approving the settlement for Orr's mother, Cindy Smith; her father, Dallas Orr; and brother, Dylan Orr. Jeffrey Kroll, principal in the law offices of Jeffrey Kroll, and the Clifford Law Offices, all of Chicago, represented the Orr family in the case.