Clarke County, IA — August 16, 2025, Natasha Lyons and an 11-year-old boy were injured in a truck accident at about 2:30 p.m. on Interstate 35 south of Osceola.
Authorities said a 2018 Dodge Caravan was heading north when it collided with a Freightliner semi-truck that had been parked on the shoulder with its hazard lights on. The truck was preparing to return to the highway at the time of the crash. The impact forced the van across both northbound lanes and into the median.
Dodge driver Natasha Lyons, 41, and her 11-year-old son were flown to area hospitals with unspecified injuries, according to authorities.
The truck driver was not injured in the crash, authorities said.
Authorities have not released any additional information about the Clarke County crash at this time.
Commentary by Attorney Michael Grossman
When people read that a minivan crashed into a parked semi-truck on the shoulder of I-35 in Clarke County, a lot of them might think the answer is obvious: the van must have drifted off the road. But that’s not necessarily true, and it’s not the right place to start asking questions.
The more important question is: Was that truck supposed to be there? The early reports say the semi was parked on the shoulder with its hazard lights on and was “preparing to re-enter the highway.” That leaves a lot unanswered. Was the truck stopped temporarily or had it been parked there for a longer period? Was it trying to merge back into traffic at the time of the crash, or was it still stationary? Depending on whether the truck was moving or stopped, different questions arise about how and why this happened.
From experience, I can say that crashes involving trucks parked on the shoulder are rarely as straightforward as they seem. If the truck was stationary, we need to know why it was stopped there. Mechanical issues? GPS directions? Something else? On the other hand, if it was attempting to merge, then questions about the truck driver’s judgment and awareness come into play. Did they check for traffic before pulling out? Did they create an obstacle the minivan couldn’t avoid?
Those aren’t things we can guess at. They’re things that need to be proven through evidence. That means looking at black box data from the truck, which can show whether it was accelerating, braking or completely still at the moment of impact. Dash cam footage, if available, could reveal whether the van had room to avoid the truck or if the truck suddenly moved into its path. Cell phone records could also show if either driver was distracted in the seconds leading up to the crash.
This is where a real investigation comes in. It’s not about assuming one driver or the other is at fault. It’s about building a clear picture based on hard facts. And if that truck was stopped on the shoulder without a valid reason, or began moving at the wrong time, that changes everything about how responsibility is assessed.
I’ve handled cases where a truck’s placement on the road was the critical issue. One that stands out involved a truck parked just barely off the roadway. It technically wasn’t blocking a lane, but it left no margin for error. When a passing vehicle got too close, disaster followed. Turns out the trucking company had a pattern of using unsafe pullover spots to save time. That detail wouldn’t have come out without digging into logbooks, GPS data and company practices. The same level of scrutiny will be needed here.
Until we know more, we shouldn’t assume we have the full story. The question isn’t just who hit whom; it’s why those two vehicles were in conflict in the first place. That’s the difference between guessing and knowing.
Key Takeaways:
- It’s unclear whether the truck was stationary or merging at the time of the crash. Each scenario raises different legal questions.
- Key evidence like dash cam footage, ECM data and phone records could clarify what really happened.
- A thorough investigation should explore why the truck was on the shoulder and whether it was safe to do so.
- Past litigation shows that seemingly simple crashes often reveal deeper issues with trucking company practices or driver decisions.
- Accountability depends on evidence, not assumptions, and that takes time, scrutiny and the right questions.
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