Lawrence County, OH — October 28, 2025, Jeremy Johnson was killed in a truck accident at about 10:50 a.m. on State Route 93.
Authorities said a 2016 Peterbilt semi-truck was heading northwest when it overturned on a curve near mile marker 22, hitting a vehicle in the oncoming lane.
Truck driver Jeremy Johnson, 48, of Nelsonville was pronounced dead at the scene of the Washington Township crash, according to authorities.
The other driver was not injured, authorities said.
Authorities have not released any additional information about the Lawrence County crash at this time.
Commentary by Attorney Michael Grossman
When people hear that a semi-truck overturned on a curve and hit someone in the oncoming lane, their first question is usually some version of: How does something like that even happen? After all, 18-wheelers don’t just tip over for no reason. But until investigators explain why this truck lost control, we’re left with more questions than answers.
The current reports only say that the truck overturned on a curve. What they don’t say is just as important. Was the truck going too fast? Did a mechanical issue play a role? Was the load balanced and secured properly? Was the driver distracted or fatigued? These are not just hypotheticals. They’re the kinds of questions that determine whether this crash was a freak accident or the result of preventable negligence.
Depending on whether the truck was carrying cargo, one possible concern is load-shifting. If cargo isn’t secured the right way, it can cause the trailer to become unstable, especially on curves. That’s something investigators should be looking at closely. Was the trailer inspected before the trip? Were weight limits observed? Did tie-downs fail?
If the issue was driver-related — say, distraction, speeding or fatigue — there are tools that can help us get to the truth. Things like cell phone records, in-cab cameras and black box data (also called engine control modules) can provide clear, timestamped information about what the driver was doing and how the vehicle was operating at the time of the crash.
And then there’s the role of the trucking company. Did they give this driver the training he needed to handle curves safely? Did they pressure him to stick to a tight schedule that might encourage speeding? Was the driver adequately screened before he was hired? I’ve handled cases where trucking companies ignored red flags in a driver’s history or rushed people through the hiring process without proper evaluations. That’s not just bad judgment. It’s a recipe for exactly this kind of outcome.
One final thing to consider: while this crash resulted in the death of the truck driver, that doesn’t automatically mean there was no wrongdoing. Sometimes a company’s poor decisions lead to a driver being put in a no-win situation. That’s why it’s critical to investigate every link in the chain; not to point fingers blindly, but to understand exactly what went wrong.
Key Takeaways:
- It’s not yet clear what caused the semi-truck to overturn; possibilities include speed, driver error, load-shifting or mechanical failure.
- Investigators should review black box data, in-cab video and cell phone records to reconstruct the crash.
- Cargo-related instability is a common but often overlooked factor in rollover crashes.
- The trucking company’s hiring, training and scheduling practices deserve close scrutiny.
- Understanding what caused the crash requires a full investigation; not just assumptions based on the outcome.
call us 
Email Us 
Text us