MARTINSBURG – The estate of a Ridgeley man who was killed in a car accident has filed a lawsuit saying a deputy sheriff and another driver are responsible for his death.
Carolyn Weigle, as administratrix of the estate of Christopher Dodrill, filed her complaint last month in Berkeley Circuit Court against the Berkeley County Commission, Deputy Sheriff Gage Clark and Kelsey Amber Romain, administratrix of the estate of Peter Christensen. Weigle is Dodrill’s mother.
Dodrill died August 3, 2024, in Martinsburg after Clark’s cruiser hit a car driven by Christensen in which Dodrill was a passenger.
According to the complaint, Clark had been dispatched for crowd control because of a fire at Riverbend RV Park in Falling Waters. While en route to the fire, Clark’s cruiser was involved in the crash that claimed Dodrill’s life. The Berkeley County Sheriff’s Department says Clark’s sirens and lights were on. Christensen also died in the accident, and Clark was treated and released from the hospital.
In the complaint, Dodrill’s estate says Clark was negligent and reckless by driving his cruiser at 70 mph on W. King Street in downtown Martinsburg, which has a 25 mph speed limit.
“Clark violently T-boned a 2018 Toyota Camry driven by Mr. Peter Christensen wherein Mr. Dodrill was a guest passenger,” the complaint states. “Mr. Christensen died at the scene of the crash. After the crash and while fighting for his life, Mr. Dodrill was urgently transported to Berkeley Memorial Hospital and immediately life-flighted to Ruby Memorial Hospital in Morgantown, West Virginia.
“After a long-stint in the Intensive Care Unit at Ruby, Mr. Dodrill was transferred to Acuity Specialty Hospital of Morgantown. Thereafter, Mr. Dodrill was transferred to UPMC Western Maryland where he died on November 18, 2024, from injuries received in the subject crash.”
The complaint says the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Department investigated the accident instead of delegating it to either the State Police or Martinsburg Police Department, both of which responded to the scene. It says the investigation determined Clark was traveling 70 mph less than two seconds before the crash but “committed no violations of West Virginia law even though West Virginia law requires Deputy Clark to exercise due care to avoid collisions.”
It says Christensen was stopped at the intersection of W. King Street and S. Illinois Avenue in a residential area of the city before proceeding straight through the intersection when Clark hit the vehicle. At 0.2 seconds before impact, the complaint says Clark was driving 51 mph in the 25-mph zone.
The estate accuses the defendants of negligence for failing to operate their vehicles safely, and it accuses Clark of recklessness. It also accuses the county commission of negligent training and supervision.
The estate says Dodrill, before his death, suffered extreme pain and suffering, extreme mental anguish, emotional distress, annoyance, aggravation, inconvenience, medical expenses, loss of ability to perform household functions and other damages. The estate also says it has suffered, in addition to Dodrill’s death, damages including medical bills, funeral and burial expenses, lost wages, loss of household services and loss of society, companionship, comfort, guidance, kindly offices, advice, services, protection, care and assistance.
Weigle and the rest of Dodrill’s estate seeks joint and several compensatory damages, general damages, punitive damages, damages under the West Virginia Wrongful Death Act, pre- and post-judgment interests, court costs, attorney fees and other relief.
The estate is being represented by Wes Prince and Samuel Madia of Madia Law Firm in Morgantown. The case has been assigned to Circuit Judge Michael Lorensen.
Berkeley Circuit Court case number 25-C-532
