One negligent left turn by a distracted driver changed everything for Scott Suydam, leaving him catastrophically injured and his family facing unimaginable uncertainty. While the collision was not his fault, the mounting medical bills, emotional distress, and permanent impact were shouldered by his family.
Knowing they needed help, they turned to Trantolo & Trantolo.
Attorney Keith Trantolo stepped in and fought for Scott and his family, holding the at-fault driver accountable, and securing the compensation that allowed him to get the care he needed and his family to regain the stability they feared they’d lost.
The crash was only the beginning. What the family endured before that resolution reveals just how much was at stake.
Scott’s Accident: A Perfect Ride Turns Tragic in a Split Second
It was a cold late-November morning, the kind of day Scott loved to ride. He layered up against the crisp air and set out on his usual route across the mountains: a quiet ride followed by a stop for coffee. Everything felt ordinary and calm.
But the calm vanished near the end of his ride.
An oncoming vehicle began a left-hand turn directly across Scott’s path of travel. In the split second he had to react, Scott thought, “he’s got to stop”... But he didn’t.
The other driver proceeded to make a left turn against the right of way. He’d later claim he didn’t see Scott.
There was no way to avoid a collision. Scott crashed into the other vehicle and was thrown from his motorcycle, slamming into the windshield.
“My body was moving forward, and when I hit the windshield my body stopped,” Scott explained. “When I stopped, everything inside my body kept moving forward.”
The force damaged his heart and shattered multiple bones.
Scott’s Life-Threatening Injuries
It was late in the morning when Scott’s wife, Leslie, received the phone call that changed everything for their family. A social worker told her that Scott was in an accident and had been airlifted to the hospital.
Scott had suffered serious injuries, and doctors didn’t know if he would survive.
Leslie and their daughter, Hannah, rushed to the hospital. Hours passed before they were allowed to see him. Hannah remembers walking into the room and feeling her world collapse. Her father, the man she always saw as indestructible, was barely recognizable: both femurs broken, compound fracture in his tibia, shattered foot, dislocated thumb, fractured back and torn aortic valve.
As Scott drifted in and out of consciousness, he told Leslie he didn’t think he was going to make it. She refused to accept it but didn’t know what life would look like if he didn’t survive, or even if he did.
A Family Confronts the Fear of Losing Everything
Scott did survive, but this marked just the beginning of a long, painful road.
While Scott’s health and recovery were their greatest concern, the family also faced mounting financial concern with medical bills climbing to more than $700,000, an impossible debt for any family.
Leslie didn’t know how they would manage months, possibly years, of care. She was overwhelmed by work, caregiving, and the weight of the insurance process. Everything about their life had changed. Hannah even put her own plans on pause to help. She quit her job and delayed college for a year so she could stay home to care for her dad.
“When I finally saw him,” Leslie remembered, “all I could think was, what am I going to do, how is this going to be taken care of?”
With Scott gravely injured, she realized she needed help from someone who understood what lay ahead and could carry the burden that she couldn’t.
Reaching Out for Help When the Burden Becomes Too Heavy
Leslie reached out to Trantolo & Trantolo. She needed someone who could steady the ground beneath her family and guide them through the chaos.
“I knew in my head I had to get a lawyer because I knew things were very serious,” Leslie recalls. “Trantolo and Trantolo came to my mind.”
Attorney Keith Trantolo answered her call.
From the very first conversation, Keith understood the immense challenges the family was facing. Scott’s injuries were catastrophic. The medical bills were already overwhelming. And the family was physically, emotionally, and financially exhausted.
Keith stepped in with a sense of calm that cut through the fear. He reassured Leslie that she didn’t need to carry the full weight of what had happened.
“Focus on Scott and your family,” he told her. “We’ll take care of everything else.”
For the first time since the accident, Leslie felt she could take a breath.
Keith walked Leslie and Hannah through what to expect and the steps he would take. His clarity brought stability to a situation that felt uncontrollable, and his compassion helped ease the stress they had been carrying alone.
Over time, the family came to see Keith as a steady presence committed to protecting their future.
Trantolo & Trantolo Fights for Accountability & the Family’s Future
As Scott began the long process of healing, Keith turned his attention to another battle: making sure the truth of what happened was taken seriously.
The driver who caused the crash claimed he simply didn’t see Scott before turning across his path. It was a familiar excuse that tried to diminish the other driver’s responsibility for causing a catastrophic accident.
The insurance company also struggled to grasp the severity of Scott’s injuries. Despite multiple surgeries and a recovery expected to span over several years, the insurance company treated the case as though it were far less devastating than it truly was.
That disconnect put Scott’s future — and his family’s — at risk. Keith understood the stakes and stepped forward to make Scott’s story heard and the full impact of the crash clear. He wasn’t going to let the insurance company minimize the claim.
As the legal challenges unfolded, Keith made sure the family never had to face them alone. He reassured Leslie and Hannah that they didn’t have to shoulder the burden and encouraged them to focus on Scott’s recovery.
Keith took the time to understand the human side of the crisis: the trauma, the sudden shift in roles, and the fear of mounting bills. He stayed in close communication, answered their questions, and guided them through the tough moments that threatened to overwhelm them.
For Leslie, that support meant everything. “Keith just kept reassuring me,” she said. “He told me to breathe, that he would take care of it.”
Resolution, Relief & a Future Restored
The settlement the family received addressed the overwhelming medical expenses, supported Scott’s long-term care needs, and gave Leslie and Hannah the peace of mind they had been fighting to find since the day of the crash.
For the first time in a long time, they no longer had to fear the next bill or wonder how they would get through the months ahead.
They finally had the room to focus on healing.
Scott’s recovery would continue, but they were able to face that journey without the threat of financial devastation. With that pressure lifted, Hannah could return her attention to her own future, Leslie felt a steadiness that once seemed out of reach, and Scott could rebuild his strength knowing his family was protected.
For all of them, the outcome was more than financial relief. It restored a sense of control, dignity, and peace during a time defined by uncertainty.
As Leslie put it, “It gave us a future. For the first time in years, we could finally take a breath.”
