The family of a Jefferson County woman who died while working at a Missouri Department of Transportation job site is on a crusade to force employers to do more to protect those who work for them.
Kaitlyn D. Anderson died when she and two other MoDOT employees were struck by a car on Nov. 18, 2021, while striping work was being done on a ramp from northbound Hwy. 231 (Telegraph Road) to westbound I-255 in south St. Louis County.
Anderson was 25 years old and 6 months pregnant with her first child, Jaxx Jarvis, when she was killed, said her mother, Tonya Musskopf.
James W. Brooks, 58, of St. Louis also died in the accident, and Michael S. Brown, 35, of House Springs was injured.
A 52-year-old Hillsboro man was driving the car that struck the workers, the Missouri State Highway Patrol reported. As of March 16, he had not been arrested nor charged with a crime.
Musskopf and her family members have made it their mission to help get Senate Bill 1188 passed, which would make it easier for people to sue employers if one of their employees is injured or killed because of inadequate safety procedures.
Tabatha Moore, Anderson’s aunt and Musskopf’s sister, said members of the family will hold a protest from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday, April 15, near the MoDOT Central Office, 105 W. Capitol Ave., in Jefferson City.
“We are trying to bring awareness for better protection for employees and better safety rules,” Moore said.
She said she was told that when her niece, Brooks and Brown were struck by the car, they were working between oncoming traffic and a MoDOT truck, which is not the industry standard.
Moore said for road projects, most companies have employees work with a truck between them and oncoming traffic, and she believes if that practice was used the day her niece and co-workers were struck, they would not have been killed or injured.
MoDOT would not comment on the incident nor the Senate bill for this story, communications director Linda Wilson Horn said.
“Unfortunately, with (the current laws) no company can be (held) responsible for a death or injury while on the job unless it was malicious or intentional,” Musskopf said. “Well, you intentionally didn’t put a truck behind my daughter, and now, my daughter and grandson are gone. That is the kind of thing that has to be changed. Someone has to be held accountable when mistakes are made and something is preventable. That was a very preventable accident.”
State Sen. Elaine Gannon (R-
De Soto), who represents the 3rd District, and Doug Beck (D-St. Louis), who represents the 1st District, introduced Senate Bill 1188 on Feb. 24.
The bill was read a second time March 10 and referred to the Small Business and Industry Committee.
“It is such a tragic event that could have been prevented if the proper precautions would have taken place,” Gannon said when the bill was introduced on the Senate floor. “(The family) wants to see justice and things made right so this never happens again. I think we can make this happen so people don’t experience such tragedy again.”
Moore said shortly after the accident the family started writing to and calling state senators and representatives about the protection employers have when someone is injured or killed while working.
Moore, who shared her De Soto home with Anderson, said after Beck agreed to introduce the bill, the family wanted to have a Republican representative attached to the bill, and Gannon said she would help, partly because Anderson lived in her district.
“(Gannon) said this bothers me and we need to do something,” Moore said. “This shouldn’t be a party thing, a Democrat or Republican thing. This should be a human thing. We need to value human life.”
If passed, Senate Bill 1188 would allow companies and public entities to be sued for punitive damages if the injury or death occurred because the employer did not follow its safety standards or those issued by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).
The bill also would increase the compensation employees or their families could receive, and it would allow for compensation to be paid for an unborn child.
“It makes my heart proud,” Musskopf said of the bill. “It means a lot to me that they (Beck and Gannon) have come together and realized politics, when it comes to a human life, should be set aside. Three lives were lost, and families were shattered. Hopefully, more senators will get on board, and hopefully, it passes. It is the right thing to do.”
Kait’s Love for Jaxx
Anderson’s family members not only are working to improve safety for employees, but also they want to help those who have lost a parent, child or pregnancy.
The family has created a nonprofit organization, the Kait’s Love for Jaxx Foundation, to keep the memory of Anderson and her unborn child alive.
“(Anderson) was such a loving and caring person,” Moore said. “The love she had for this baby who hadn’t arrived yet was so great. We just want to honor that love and our love for both of them. It is important to us that people don’t forget they were here, they mattered and they should still be here.”
In addition, the foundation will provide medical alert bracelets to pregnant women so people will know they’re pregnant in the case of an emergency. Also, the group will provide care packages to those who have lost a parent or a child or to a mother who has a child after previously suffering a miscarriage, still birth or infant loss.
The foundation held its first event on Feb. 12 in Festus and collected donations for the care packages. It was held the same day a baby shower was planned for Anderson, whose birthday was March 28 and whose due date was March 30.
Musskopf said she wanted to still have the shower but transform it into a collection drive with the donated items going to the foundation and the St. Louis Crisis Nursery Center.
Moore said more than 150 people donated diapers, wipes and other baby items. The items that could not be used for care packages were donated to the crisis center.
“I know Kaitlyn is looking down proud, knowing her name and Jaxx’s name will carry on and help other babies and mothers,” Musskopf said. ”If we save one baby or give one baby diapers for that week who may not have had them, I know my daughter is proud.”
The foundation is planning two events at Arnold City Park on Bradley Beach Road to help raise funds for its efforts and collect toys for those in need.
The first event will be a Slow Down and Move Over walk on Saturday, May 14. It costs $30 to participate in the walk at the park or $35 to participate virtually.
Those participating will receive a T-shirt and pin.
“The Slow Down and Move Over walk is very important because the more people who see those shirts, the more people may start saying to themselves they need to slow down and move over in a work zone,” Musskopf said.
The second event will be a toy drive and bags tournament on Saturday, Aug. 13. The drive will be from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., and the bags tournament will be from noon to 6 p.m. It will cost $100 to enter a team of two. Toy donations will be taken to the Jefferson County Division of Family Services to provide presents for children in the foster care program, Moore said.
Musskopf said former St. Louis Blues player Reed Low will participate in the August event.
“I am thankful for him,” she said. “He said he will try to get other Blues alumni to help.”
Musskopf said the foundation honoring her daughter and lost grandson will be around for a long time as Anderson’s brother, Bryson Musskopf, and other relatives said they will keep the foundation going.
“The Kait’s Love for Jaxx will not go anywhere,” she said. “The foundation is the only thing that is keeping me going. It is something I feel in my heart that Kait told me to do. I will keep doing it until my last breath.”
For more information about the events, go to kaitsloveforjaxx.org.