A Chelmsford woman and her parents are suing rock star Sully Erna of the band Godsmack because of a car accident last year.
The auto negligence lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Boston stems from the April 11, 2007 three-car crash on Route 213 in Methuen, near Interstate 93. The crash happened around 7 p.m.
The plaintiffs are 26-year-old Lindsay Taylor and her parents, Elaine and Jeffrey, all of Chelmsford.
The Taylors blame Erna for causing the crash, but Erna says the man who drove the car Taylor rode in rear-ended someone else before Erna collided with them, court documents say.
Erna, a 40-year-old Lawrence native who now lives in Windham, N.H., drove a 2006 Hummer H3 owned by Godsmack Touring Inc., which is also named as a defendant.
Erna was not hurt in the crash.
Taylor rode in the back seat of a Toyota Camry driven by Eric Sargent of Haverhill. She suffered a severe traumatic brain injury and was in a coma after the crash, the lawsuit and her lawyer say.
Her lawsuit says Erna drove "negligently and carelessly" and caused the wreck.
Taylor is working on recovering, said her lawyer, Andrew Abraham of Boston.
"She's not doing well," Abraham said. "She has suffered a pretty significant injury and probably will never fully recover."
Erna and his lawyers filed a third-party complaint against Sargent, saying Sargent "is, or may be" liable for "all or part of" the claims against the rocker. Erna and his lawyers say Sargent rear ended a Honda Odyssey driven by Maureen White of Londonderry, N.H. before Erna rear ended him.
"This is an instance of an unfortunate accident and the case has been and is being aggressively defended and discovered, and it is the position of the defendants that Mr. Erna was not the cause of this accident and the plaintiff's injuries," said Erna's lawyer, Michael Gallagher of Lowell.
Sargent filed a document responding to Erna's claim, saying he denies rear ending White first.
The lawsuit does not specifically say how much money the Taylors are suing for.
State and local police responded to the crash. Methuen police Captains Randy Haggar and Kristopher McCarthy are being called in to give depositions Jan. 7, Gallagher said.
Neither Sargent nor White were injured, police and firefighters said after the crash.
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