PRESS CONFERENCE: July 24, 2025
10 a.m.
The Law Offices of Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard, P.C.
161 N. Clark St., 35th Floor
Chicago, IL 60601
Watch the recorded press conference for firsthand remarks from the legal team and family representatives below.
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. (July 23, 2025) – The family of a beloved Alton, Illinois, couple who was killed during a police pursuit involving another vehicle has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the city of Wood River for initiating and continuing a deadly pursuit along commercial or residential roadways when it was unsafe to do so.
Just before 11 a.m. on July 3, 2025, a Wood River police officer attempted to pull over driver Miko D. Martin for a minor traffic violation near the intersection of 6th Street and Edwardsville Road. Martin refused to stop and immediately fled the intersection through a parking lot before heading southbound on 6th Street. The officer pursued the vehicle Mr. Martin was driving for several minutes as he attempted to flee the scene, reaching speeds at or above 70 miles per hour through residential and commercial areas. The pursuit ended when Martin hit a vehicle occupied by George Julian, 66, and his wife Donna Julian, 68, near the intersection of northbound Illinois Route 3 and Illinois Route 143. The impact of the collision catapulted Julian’s vehicle into a ravine where it became engulfed in flames, trapping them inside. The couple was pronounced dead at the scene.
The couple is survived by their adult children and grandchildren.
On July 23, 2025, the family of George and Donna Julian filed a lawsuit in Madison County Circuit Court against the city of Wood River for its role in the dangerous pursuit that culminated in the deaths of George and Donna. The lawsuit claims the city of Wood River showed an utter indifference to the safety of others by engaging in a pursuit of the vehicle when the risk of injury or death to the general public exceeded the benefit of apprehending the suspect, among other claims.
The Illinois State Police have taken over the investigation of the crash.
“Every police officer in the United States is aware of the myriad risks associated with high-speed vehicle pursuits. Responsible officers know all too well from their training, experience, and the exercise of common sense that you don’t risk the lives of innocent people to chase a traffic offender. Here, two people who were loved by so many were senselessly lost in a preventable tragedy,” Plaintiff’s attorney Lance D. Northcutt said.
The family is also represented by attorneys Patrick A. Salvi II, Lance D. Northcutt, and Emily T. Art of Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard, P.C., and Roy C. Dripps and Michael T. Blotevogel of Dripps & Blotevogel LLC.
The family and their attorneys will hold a press conference on Thursday, July 24, at 10 a.m. at The Law Offices of Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard, P.C. (161 N. Clark Street, 35th Floor, Chicago, IL 60601) to discuss the filing of the lawsuit. During the press conference, the family will read a statement, and their attorneys will provide more details on the lawsuit.
For more information, please contact Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard’s Director of Public Relations, Marcie Mangan, at (312) 372-1227 or mmangan@salvilaw.com.
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Case No.: 2025 LA 000914 [Estate of DONNA JULIAN, Deceased, by MARK BRIGGS, Special Representative; and Estate of GEORGE JULIAN, Deceased, by JOHN BARRY JULIAN, Special Representative, Plaintiffs, v. CITY OF WOOD RIVER, ILLINOIS, Defendant.]
