ATKNSON — An Atkinson mother has filed a personal injury lawsuit against the makers of Jeep Grand Cherokee because her parked vehicle popped out of gear and rolled over her legs as she tried to stop it, according to her lawyer.

The incident was similar to what may have killed Star Trek actor Anton Yelchin, according to Boston-based attorney Steve Berman. Yelchin died in his Los Angeles driveway on June 19 when his 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee rolled backward down a driveway and fatally struck him.

“While common sense would dictate a vehicle’s shifter — an integral part of car design and safety — be user friendly and functional, Fiat Chrysler has knowingly sold these vehicles with a shifter that it self-describes as confusing,” said Berman.

The lawsuit filed on behalf of Becky Peoples, 42, of Atkinson is one of two lawsuits that Berman says he has filed in federal courts in New Hampshire and Virginia against automaker Fiat Chrysler.

Peoples was injured on Nov. 8, 2015 after driving her 14-year-old daughter to her father’s house to get her gear bag for basketball practice, according to Berman. It was dark at the time, and People’s put her 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee in park and left it running while she walked up to the front door of the home with her daughter, the lawsuit says.

Once her daughter went inside to grab her bag, Peoples noticed that her Jeep was rolling away in reverse, according to Berman.

At first, Peoples thought the car was being stolen. She ran after it and noticed no one was driving. Peoples was able to reach the handle of the driver’s side door and pulled it open. That’s when she began to be dragged by the vehicle, according to Berman.

She let go of the vehicle when she saw her Jeep headed into a neighbor’s mailbox. The car door hit the neighbor’s mailbox post and tore the post out of the ground, which caused the vehicle to make a hard left turn, go across the street and head up another inclined driveway.

Peoples was knocked face down into the driveway, with the Jeep rolling over both of her legs, according to Berman. Berman said that Peoples’ injuries left her unable to walk. She was in braces for 12 weeks and has endured over 20 physical therapy sessions. Peoples’ recovery is expected to take more than a year, according to Berman.

“Since we began our initial investigation, dozens of individuals have come forward with details of rollaway Jeep injuries,” Berman said in a statement. “It is our hope that we can bring a swift end to the injuries and crashes caused by Fiat Chrysler’s gross negligence and concealment of this widespread defect.”

Los Angeles police are still investigating Yelchin’s death. He was killed after he stepped out of his Jeep and it rolled down a steep driveway and crushed him against a concrete-reinforced mailbox.

A recall by Fiat Chrysler in April included roughly 812,000 vehicles, which included the 2014 and 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee. Berman’s firm is also seeking a class action lawsuit against the auto maker.

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