South Carolina Lawyer BlogThe city of Fort Worth has offered the family of a man killed by an officer’s Taser $2 million to settle their lawsuit, although the city admits no wrong doing, reports the Star-Telegram.
Articles Posted in Wrongful Death
$1.8 Million Award Against Hyundai Following Teen’s Death
A jury in San Angelo (Texas) federal court has reached a $1.8 million award against Hyundai Motor Company in favor of the plaintiff – the father of a 19-year-old girl killed in 2007, reports GoSanAngelo.
The teenager was a passenger in a car driven by her sister when the car veered off the road and rolled over. Although she was wearing a seatbelt at the time of the accident, she was thrown out through the back window of the car because her seat was too far reclined. She was pronounced dead on arrival at the hospital.
In filing the lawsuit, the father of the dead girl hopes to call on the auto industry to correct the design which allows a car to be driven with the seat reclined. Experts testified a car seat reclined past 45 degrees is unsafe and the safest position for the passenger seat is in the upright position.
Settlement Reached In Teenager Death During Police Chase
The Kansas City Star reports a settlement has been reached in the wrongful death lawsuit filed by the parents of a teenager against the Independence (Missouri) Police Department.
$2.25 Million to Be Paid By Officer and Bar In Deadly Car Crash
A police officer and the bar which served her will pay a total of $2.255 million for the wrongful death of four, and the injuries to another man, reports St. Louis Today.
The lawsuit claimed the police officer had consumed a “high quantity” of alcohol at O’Leary’s Restaurant and Bar and the employees at the bar knew she was intoxicated and did not stop her from driving or call her a cab. Despite her slurred speech and unsteady walk, the bar continued to serve her alcohol, the article reports. After leaving the bar, the officer crashed her car into a Honda with five students from India, the article reports.
The driver of the car hit by the police officer suffered a head injury, a fractured rib, liver trauma, lung contusion, and contusions to the skull. His four passengers were killed.
Oregon Bar Owners Will Pay At Least $1.3 Million In Drunk-Driving Death
The former owners of a restaurant in Gresham, Oregon will pay $1.3 million after being accused of serving too much alcohol to a convicted drunk driver who killed two young women reports KATU.com. The judge could more than double that amount.
Although the Golden Star Restaurant is now under different ownership, the parents of the young women sued the former owners accusing them of knowingly over-serving the driver and then allowing her to drive.
The bar had a history of over-serving its patrons and had received several written warnings from the Gresham police, an Oregon Liquor Control Commission fine and dozens of patron DUI arrests, according to newspaper reports.
$33 Million Award Against Walgreens Upheld In Woman’s Death
The Ledger of Lakeland, Florida reports an appeals court has upheld a lower court’s award of $33.3 million to a husband and three of his children in their wrongful death lawsuit against Walgreens. Their 46-year-old wife and mother died in 2007 after Walgreen’s pharmacy mistakenly gave her 10 times the prescribed dosage for a blood thinner to treat breast cancer.
$1 Million Settlement Reached In Man’s Wrongful Death
The family of a 27-year-old man whose unlawful death was caused by police in Clackamas County, Oregon, has reached a $1 million settlement with the county, reports the Gresham News. The family had separately reached a $1 million settlement with the city of Sandy and a former police officer.
Family of University of Washington Scientist Files Wrongful Death Lawsuit
The family of a 39-year-old scientist at the University of Washington has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the driver of the vehicle that struck and killed him on February 4, 2009, reports the Ballard News-Tribune.
Kevin Black was struck by a Ford E250 van as he was bicycling to work. The driver attempted a U-turn on a street unable to accommodate it and drove into the bike lane, hitting Black. Black was taken to Harborview Medical Center where he later died.
Black, an avid cyclist, was a molecular researcher at the University. He leaves behind two daughters, ages 13 and 10.
Maryland Jury Awards $1.85M in Newborn’s Wrongful Death
The Frederick News Post reports a Montgomery County Circuit jury has given a couple a $1.8 million award in the death of their newborn son.
When the baby was born on July 5, 2005, the doctor chose to use vacuum extraction for the delivery because the baby’s head was wedged in the birth canal. He died two days later of complications arising from bleeding between the skull and the scalp.
The lawsuit claimed that not only did the doctor violate the standards of care; he performed the procedure without advising the parents of the risks involved. Had the parents been told of the complications, they would have waited for a cesarean section.
$3.5 Million Awarded in Wrongful Death Logging Truck Accident
A Chilton County, Alabama jury has awarded $3.5 million to the family of a man killed when the van he was driving was crushed between two logging trucks, reports the Montgomery Advertiser.
Ken Gorum Trucking and Gary Fruge, the driver of the logging truck, were held responsible for the accident and have been ordered to pay the award. The jury found Fruge was speeding, and the truck had defective brakes, when it crashed into the victim’s van.
The victim’s car was pushed into the logs on the truck in front of him, causing the logs to come through his windshield – one went through his head and killed him. Although the driver claims he was going only 45 miles per hour, evidence suggests he was traveling between 65 and 75 mph.