Mia Dusek's family files Illinois lawsuit against Peoria's Express Liquors, Clayton Bell
The family of deceased Limestone High School athlete Mia Dusek has officially filed a lawsuit after she died in a car accident where alcohol was involved.
According to a news release from the law office of Jeff Green, Dusek's family has filed a lawsuit against the driver, Clayton Bell, and Linda 1, Inc., the company that owns and runs Express Liquors, at 725 N. Western Ave., Peoria, Ill.
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Why is the family of Mia Dusek suing Clayton Bell and Express Liquors' parent company?
According to the release, the lawsuit will be officially released Thursday morning, but several details of the case were revealed.
The lawsuit cites the conduct of both Clayton Bell and Express Liquors leading up to the fatal accident.
The release says claims against the business show Express Liquors "sold multiple 12-packs, a 6-pack and multiple 'Four Loko' tall boys to a 17-year-old minor who then provided the alcohol to Clayton Bell who was driving the vehicle Mia Dusek was in at the time of the single-vehicle, rollover crash that occurred on Feb. 26, 2022."
The release notes a Peoria County Sheriff's Department "sting" has yielded two different instances since Dusek's death where citations were issued to Express Liquors for selling alcohol to minors without asking for identification.
The release further maintains that the practice of selling to minors without carding them is a habitual offense of Express Liquors.
Prior to the night of Dusek's death, Express Liquors had sold alcohol to minors 65 times, according to a pre-suit investigation cited in the release. An unnamed teen between the ages of 15 and 16 is referred to in the release as having bought alcohol from Express Liquors 30 times in one year without ever being carded or asked for ID.
The lawsuit continues with a look at Bell's actions on the evening of Dusek's death. The release says Bell was traveling at or above 75 miles per hour in a 35-mph zone while operating the vehicle with a blood-alcohol content (BAC) level of .14%.
The 18-year-old Bell was sentenced to 14 years in prison on June 20.
Clayton Bell trial: Teen receives 14-year prison term for Bartonville DUI crash that killed Mia Dusek
What happened in Bartonville the night Mia Dusek died?
Officers responded to a call about a vehicle resting on its rooftop around 12:25 a.m. Feb. 27, 2022. When officers arrived, they found a vehicle that had overturned multiple times and originally had four teens in the vehicle.
Bell, who was driving at the time, was estimated to be driving approximately 80 miles per hour in a 35 mph speed zone.
The 15-year-old Dusek was one of the teens in the vehicle that night. A video taken from the backseat prior to the crash was played in the courtroom where Dusek could be heard screaming and a front seat passenger begged Bell to "value our life" and slow down.
Three teens were taken to a local hospital with injuries. Dusek was ejected from the vehicle and pronounced dead at about 1:02 a.m. All four were students at Limestone Community High School.
What is a DUI in Illinois?
According to the state of Illinois, driving under the influence, or DUI, focuses on blood-alcohol concentration, or BAC, measuring how much alcohol is in the body's system based on a test of breath, blood or urine.
In Illinois, a BAC of .08% or more equates to impaired driving and is illegal. However, drivers can be convicted of DUI even if the BAC is less than .08% if driving ability is impaired.
On the evening in question, Bell had a BAC of .14% after receiving a blood draw.
Clayon Bell charged in DUI accident: 17-year-old charged with reckless homicide in crash that killed Bartonville teen
Clayton Bell's Illinois court sentencing
The maximum sentence of 14 years received a passionate argument from Illinois Assistant State's Attorney Brenda McCavitt on June 20, according to a news release. After hearing McCavitt's plea, Judge John Vespa agreed and served Bell with the maximum sentence.
Bell was immediately taken into custody by the bailiffs and began serving his sentence.
Chris Sims is a digital producer for the Journal Star. Follow him on Twitter: @ChrisFSims.
This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Mia Dusek lawsuit takes aim at Peoria liquor store and Clayton Bell
