TUSCOLA COUNTY, MICHIGAN — The Putman family, known from TLC’s reality television show “Meet the Putmans,” has filed a federal civil lawsuit against a North Carolina trucking company and its driver after a crash on September 26, 2025, killed three family members and left multiple others with severe, long-term injuries. The family was returning home from a high school football game at the time of the crash.
The lawsuit names PK Turbo LLC of North Carolina and driver Pavel Shchukin. The crash occurred at the intersection of Deckerville and Hurds Corner Roads in Tuscola County. The suit alleges Shchukin blew through a double stop sign and struck the driver’s side of the family’s vehicle.
The Victims
Three family members were killed in the crash — patriarch Bill Putman, his wife Barb, and their daughter-in-law Megan Putman. The Tuscola County Medical Examiner ruled all three deaths as accidental.
Multiple other family members sustained serious injuries. Gia Putman was diagnosed with a severe traumatic brain injury, skull fractures, bleeding in the brain, a spinal fracture, and massive internal injuries. Noah Putman suffered a severe brain injury, brain bleeding, multiple spine fractures, a shoulder blade fracture, lung bruising, and knee and meniscus tears. Blake Putman — whose wife Megan was killed — sustained a neck fracture, broken nose, concussion, and lung bruises and continues to experience ongoing pain and neurological issues. Lulu Putman suffered broken bones in the pelvis and sacrum and a tendon injury. Alena Putman sustained a broken collarbone, serious concussion with loss of consciousness, dizziness, and nausea.
Beyond the physical injuries, the suit says family members who arrived at the scene within moments of the crash suffered extreme emotional trauma after witnessing their parents, spouses, children, and grandparents dead or dying.
What the Lawsuit Alleges
The suit accuses Shchukin of failing to stop at the double stop sign, failing to yield at the intersection, driving too fast, not paying attention, and possibly texting while driving. The suit also alleges Shchukin violated multiple traffic laws and did not meet English language proficiency requirements for commercial truck drivers.
The lawsuit also holds PK Turbo LLC directly responsible, arguing the company should not have entrusted Shchukin with a commercial truck if he was not properly qualified, and that by doing so the company created a foreseeable danger to the public.
The Criminal Case
Shchukin was sentenced on December 10, 2025, to 365 days in jail with credit for 74 days already served. He pleaded no contest to three counts of moving violation causing death. In exchange, five additional counts of moving violation causing serious impairment of bodily function were dropped.
The family is seeking at least $75,000 in damages for wrongful death, injuries, and emotional trauma. Separately, the family has been lobbying Tuscola County to improve the intersection. The Tuscola County Road Commission unveiled plans earlier this month to upgrade that intersection and others with a history of serious crashes.
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