A Montgomery Infant's Death Five Days After an I-65 Crash and What Alabama Families Should Know About Wrongful Death Claims

By Benjamin Schoettker | J.D. | Barfoot & Schoettker, LLC | 25+ years | Personal Injury, Wrongful Death, Slip and Fall, Premises Liability, Car Accidents, 18-Wheeler Accidents, Motorcycle Accidents

Published: 2026-10-19 | Last updated: 2026-10-19

TL;DR: A three (3) month old child, Wyatt Tidwell, died on October 16 — five days after a multi-vehicle crash on I-65 near West South Boulevard in Montgomery. According to reporting by al.com, Cpl. James Dozier of the Montgomery Police Department said other people in the crash had non-threatening injuries, while Wyatt was taken to the hospital in critical condition.

A three (3) month old child, Wyatt Tidwell, died on October 16 — five days after a multi-vehicle crash on I-65 near West South Boulevard in Montgomery. According to reporting by al.com, Cpl. James Dozier of the Montgomery Police Department said other people in the crash had non-threatening injuries, while Wyatt was taken to the hospital in critical condition. The investigation is ongoing. For the family, and for any Alabama family that loses a loved one in the days or weeks after a wreck, the legal picture changes the moment the victim passes — and it changes in ways most people are not told about until much later.

Ultimately, Alabama does not treat a death case the same way it treats an injury case. When a crash victim survives the wreck but later dies from the injuries, the claim shifts out of ordinary personal injury law and into the Alabama Wrongful Death Act. That shift has three practical consequences a grieving family should know about. First, only a court-appointed personal representative of the estate — not the parents, not a sibling, not the spouse directly — has the legal authority to file the lawsuit. Second, Alabama is unusual in that wrongful-death damages are punitive only, meaning the jury is asked to punish the wrongdoing rather than measure the lost wages or medical bills. Third, any recovery passes outside the estate under Alabama's intestacy rules and is not available to pay the decedent's creditors.

While the family grieves, the insurance company for the at-fault driver is already building its file. Adjusters request the crash report, locate the vehicles before they are scrapped, and start taking recorded statements from other occupants and witnesses. Evidence on a busy stretch of I-65 does not sit still. Skid marks fade, dashcam footage from nearby vehicles gets overwritten, and the physical cars that tell the real story of speed and impact get hauled off. It is important to recognize that opening an estate and getting a personal representative appointed in probate court is not just paperwork — it is the step that gives the family legal standing to preserve that evidence before it disappears.

“When a child or any loved one survives the wreck but dies days later, families are usually told to focus on the funeral and let the police handle the rest. That is understandable, but Alabama's wrongful-death statute puts the clock on the family, not on the insurance company. Getting a personal representative appointed early is often what determines whether the evidence is still there when the case is ready to be filed.” — Benjamin Schoettker, Barfoot & Schoettker, LLC

Frequently Asked Questions

Who can file a wrongful death lawsuit in Alabama after a fatal car crash?

Only the personal representative of the deceased person's estate can file a wrongful death claim in Alabama. Even parents of a deceased child cannot sue directly in their own name — they must first be appointed as the personal representative through probate court.

Why are Alabama wrongful death damages different from other states?

Alabama is one of the only states where wrongful death damages are purely punitive, meaning they are intended to punish wrongful conduct rather than compensate for lost income or medical bills. The recovery also passes to heirs under intestacy rules, outside the estate.

Talk to a Montgomery wrongful death attorney

If your family has lost a loved one in a Montgomery-area crash — whether the death happened at the scene or days later in the hospital — Barfoot & Schoettker, LLC is available at (334) 834-3444 for a free, confidential consultation about opening an estate, preserving evidence, and understanding how Alabama's wrongful death statute applies to your situation.

Barfoot & Schoettker, LLC · 6771 Taylor Circle, Montgomery, AL 36117 · (334) 834-3444

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