In March 2020, a train crashed into a car stalled on a set of train tracks in Fairbury, seriously injuring the car’s driver. Now, more than four years later, the initial claim has officially been settled, bringing this long-running legal saga to a formal finish. 

Isabella Kenney, now Isabella Duey, was struck by a train while in her car in Fairbury in March 2020, suffering serious injuries. Now, late in 2024, the city’s contracted insurance company, EMC, has reached a settlement with Duey amounting to $62,500.  

On Tuesday night, the Fairbury city council was given formal notice of this settlement, which formally ends Duey’s litigation. It also “releases the city from any further liability,” according to the settlement overview read by city council president Brad Kuzelka, and none of the settlement money was paid for out of the city’s budget.  

That final point is a key one, especially from the perspective of the elected members of the city council: the terms of the settlement stipulate that the city of Fairbury was not responsible for the accident and is not tasked with fixing anything, and yet, optically, it appears that the city must be financially responsible for the money awarded in the settlement. 

For the people tasked with overseeing the city’s finances, Tuesday’s settlement notice sparked a sentiment: if the city isn’t at fault, why is the city responsible for the money in the settlement?  

But agreeing to a settlement is not equivalent to liability, city attorney Kurth Brashear underscored, and the city’s insurance partner, EMC, is responsible for the money awarded in the settlement, not the city itself. 

“Insurance is paying – the city is not using any taxpayer dollars to satisfy the terms of this claim,” Brashear said. “The insurance companies have the authority to settle – the city gives them that authority by buying the insurance. So in these cases it’s a different approach than in a case where the city – the city attorney or lawyers hired to defend the city – that would have to come to the city council for your consideration.” 

In the end, there was no vote, and really no action needed by the council, the body was simply notified that the settlement had previously been reached – which provided some money for restitution for Duey, the initial victim, absolved the city of any liability in the incident, and officially closed the book on legal proceedings that have lasted for longer than four years.