The families of two boys, impaired after drinking at a party hosted by their coach, died when they drove their car into a front-end loader driven into a roadway without a flagman to warn them of its existence. Now, as reported by the Treasure Coast Palm, their families have settled with the construction company, out of court, in two wrongful death lawsuits.
The boys died in August 2009, the suits were filed the same year. The Sheltra & Son Construction Co., based in Indiantown, was in charge of a road-widening project at the time of the '09 incident.
Along with Sheltra & Son, the construction worker that drove the front-end loader, P.P.E., was also named in the suit.
N.C., 18, was the driver of the 1989 Jeep Cherokee, who, along with passengers C.B., 18, C.G., 16, died in the crash.
N.C.'s blood alcohol level proved to be more than three times the legal limit - at 0.251 percent - per a report from the Florida Highway Patrol. FHP also performed blood alcohol tests on C.B. and C.G., and determined that they were also impaired by alcohol before the crash.
H.B. and S.B., C.B.'s parents, settled out of court on November 8 for an undisclosed amount. Circuit Judge Elizabeth Metzger signed the order that both dismissed the suit and called for opposing parties to pay for their own costs and their attorney fees.
The attorney for C.B.'s parents, Farrah Fugett-Mullen said, "It's one of those cases where I can't speak of any amounts that may have been exchanged. They ultimately wanted closure in the case; nothing that could have been done inside a courtroom or outside a courtroom was ever going to bring (C.B.) back. The best we could do was take this case as far as necessary to have some sense of closure for them, and hopefully that is what has occurred."
C.G.'s parents have divorced since the death of their son. Attorney Scott J. Donaldson said on their behalf, "That (court ordered) mediation led to our confidential settlement." He then added, "I don't think either Mr. (G.) or Mrs. (G.) will ever recover from the loss of their son. It's just something that will not happen, and that's a reality they will have to live with for the rest of their lives."
An excerpt from the FHP report is as follows: The front-end loader was halfway into the eastbound lane of Cove Road when it was stuck by the Jeep Cherokee. There were no flagmen employed by the construction company to wave off oncoming traffic. P.P.E. voluntarily submitted to a blood sample at 2:52 a.m., less than an hour after the collision, and nothing was found in his system.
An assistant coach at the boy's high school, and another man, pleaded guilty to having alcohol served to minors a house party earlier that evening. The men were ordered to serve a short span of jail time and less than six months of probation.
The men were not charged for manslaughter as it was determined that the three boys had ingested alcohol prior to arriving at the party.
If you are considering filing a wrongful death lawsuit, contact a personal injury lawyer for help. Oftentimes monetary awards, as well as change, occur when matters are brought to light.