Articles Posted in Wrongful Death

Marouane Hdidou, the husband of a waitress who died in a car collision involving singer-actress Brandy, has filed a wrongful death claim against her. This is the third wrongful death lawsuit filed against Brandy Morris in connection to the death of Awatef Aboudihaj, whose parents and two children have already filed their own claims.

The accident, which took place on the San Diego Freeway on December 30, also left several other motorists severely injured. Mallory Ham, the 50-year-old woman whose car also hit Aboudihaj’s car as she was trying to avoid another vehicle that had gone into her lane, is also named in the lawsuit.

Hdidou says that more than 20 other unnamed drivers may have also been involved in negligently causing his wife’s death. He is accusing the drivers of driving too fast and following to closely, causing the wrongful death of his wife.

California Highway Patrol has told prosecutors that Brandy should be charged with misdemeanor manslaughter for causing the multi-car collision. According to police, the 28-year-old entertainer was traveling at 65mph and failed to slow down in traffic, which caused her to hit Aboudihaj’s Honda with her Land Rover.

The Honda then hit another car, slid to the side, struck the center divide, and was hit by Ham’s car. If convicted, Brandy could face a $1,000 fine and up to one year in prison.

Hdidou is seeking medical and funeral costs, legal fees, and a number of punitive damages. He is also requesting damages for the deprivation of “support, maintenance, solace, moral support, companionship, and comfort” caused by the death of his wife.

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The sons of a woman who was killed in a car accident last December involving singer-actress Brandy have filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the performer. This is the second wrongful death lawsuit filed against the singer in connection to the accident.

Brandy had been driving the SUV that collided into the Honda being driven by Awatef Aboudihaj, 38, on a San Diego freeway. The woman died as a result of the collision, and her parents filed a $50 million wrongful death claim against Brandy last month.

This second lawsuit is being filed on behalf of her two sons, Kareem Mohamed, 10, and Mrwan Mohamed, 14, both who will allegedly “be forever harmed by the loss of their mother.” Damages will be decided during the trial.

Brandy, whose real name is Brandy Norwood, has not been criminally charged for her role in the accident, although California Highway Patrol investigators are recommending that she be charged with misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter. If she is charged and convicted, the singer would have to pay a $1,000 fine and spend up to a year in prison.

Brandy is a Grammy award-winning singer who began recording music at 14. She also formerly starred on the television show “Moesha.”

In order to file a wrongful death claim, you have to establish the following:

· There is evidence that could justify grounds for a wrongful death case
· The victim died because of another’s negligence
· You can identify the person or entity to blame for causing the wrongful death

Survivors who are directly related to the deceased are allowed to file a wrongful death lawsuit. This includes, parents, spouses, children, and grandchildren.

Each state has a different statute of limitations for filing a wrongful death suit. Damages can be filed for a number of losses, including the loss of the decedent’s companionship, any income (including benefits, financial support, inheritance) that may have been received by survivors had their loved one not been killed, and punitive damages intended to punish the defendant for their negligent actions leading to death. These damages are separate from any prison time or fines that a defendant may be sentenced to in criminal court for the same accident.

Filing a wrongful death claim can be a very stressful and complex process, and it will be important that you retain the services of an experienced wrongful death attorney who can help you.

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Gary Lee Dicks, a Virginia truck driver, was acquitted by a Howard County District Court judge for traffic citations he had received in connection with a tragic accident involving a non-working traffic light that led to the deaths of two Howard County teenagers in January 2006.

Scott Kaplan, a 19-year-old from Columbia, and Theresa Howard, an 18-year-old from Sykesville, died on January 6, 2006 at the intersection of Interstate 95 and Route 175 in Jessup when Dicks exited 1-95 on his tractor-trailer and hit the Volvo that the teenagers were riding in. The traffic light at the intersection was not working at the time, nor was it being supervised by state or county police.

Howard County Police say that a number of incorrect assumptions and missteps resulted in county police failing to staff the non-working light and mark it with safety devices. Because of this accident, Howard County police officers have now been ordered to never leave the scene of a non-working traffic light.

On February 1, Judge Pamila Brown found Dicks not guilty of failure to stop at a through highway and yield the right of way and not guilty of negligent driving.

The Virginia truck driver is still a defendant in two wrongful death lawsuits filed separately by the teenagers’ parents. Each lawsuit is demanding $5 million. The Maryland State Police, a state trooper, a former Howard County police officer, the driver of the Volvo that Caplan and Howard were riding in, and the five transportation companies that subcontracted work to Dicks are also defendants in the suit.

A wrongful death case can be very complex, especially when several parties are named in a claim. Out-of-court settlements, instead of going to trial, tend to be common. When these occur, the damage awards that are sought are often lowered.
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Statute of Limitations for Personal Injury Actions Involving Adult Victims in the State of Maryland:

Wrongful Death: This type of claim must be filed no more than three years from the date of death. In cases involving wrongful death due to a toxic substance in the workplace, a claim must be filed either within three years from when the cause of death was discovered or ten years from the date of death.

Medical Malpractice: This type of action must be filed within five years of the occurrence of the malpractice act that led to the injury or within three years of discovering the injury.

Products Liability: A person injured in a products liability case has three years from the date of injury to make a claim.

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The family of a 38-year-old woman killed in a deadly four-car freeway accident last month is suing singer-actress Brandy for $50 million.

The wrongful death suit was filed yesterday in Los Angeles Superior Court by the parents of car accident victim Awatef Aboudihaj, one day after the California Highway Patrol recommended to prosecutors that the 27-year old performer be charged with vehicular manslaughter. In the three-page complaint, Aboudihaj’s family says her death happened because of Brandy’s “reckless driving.”
According to the CHP, Brandy (Norwood) was determined to be at fault for the December 30 accident, because she failed to avoid hitting the car in front of her with her Land Rover, after traffic abruptly slowed down. Aboudihaj died when her car, hit by Brandy’s car, slammed into the back of a third car. Aboudihaj’s vehicle then spun into the freeway’s center divide and was hit by a fourth vehicle.

According to investigators, the former star of the TV comedy “Moesha” was in her car alone. No alcohol, drugs, or the use of a cell phone were involved. The misdemeanor offense that police are recommending caries a $1,000 fine and a one-year jail sentence.

If a person dies because of someone else’s negligent, careless, or intentional actions, then the family of the deceased may be able to file a wrongful death lawsuit. This type of lawsuit lets family members receive compensation for the loss of their loved one.

Who Can File A Wrongful Death Suit:

· The parents of the deceased.
· The spouse of the person who has died.

· The child of the deceased.

A wrongful death suit is a civil case, not a criminal case. In a wrongful death lawsuit, monetary damage is sought for a person’s death. In order to win a wrongful death case, there must be a preponderance of evidence of guilt. This means that the plaintiff’s attorney must only prove that there is a 51% chance of guilt by the accused party.

There are different statutes of limitations in each state for filing a wrongful death suit, and some states limit the amount of damages that can be claimed.

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The Court of Special Appeals in Maryland says that the family of deceased mechanic Joseph Wilbon will not get the nearly $500,000 they had won for Wilbon’s wrongful death.

This latest ruling is based on a technical violation, because attorneys for the family did not file the wrongful death lawsuit within six months of Wilbon’s death in 2000. Wilbon’s family had been awarded $498,000 by a Baltimore City Circuit Court jury, and now the court is reversing the decision.

According to the attorney for Wilbon’s family, two Baltimore police officers had mistakenly identified Wilbon as a homeless person, and, as a result, took their time in getting him to the hospital.

According to reports, two police officers, Officer Jeffrey Mathena Jr. and Officer Trainee Franklin Hunsicker, had Wilbon in their custody for over an hour on June 5, 2000 before taking him to an emergency room where he had a seizure while waiting for treatment. He died from cardiac arrhythmia within an hour of arriving at the hospital.

The Baltimore jury had awarded Wilbon’s family the settlement in April 2005 on the grounds of false arrest, and imprisonment, and battery.

Wrongful Death Statues

In the U.S., each state has a statute of limitations regarding how long a period of time a person has to file a wrongful death lawsuit. The length of time varies, but a person must file the suit within this period, or their case will not be considered. Often, the person or persons being sued for wrongful death will try to have the case dismissed because the suit was not filed within the statute of limitations period.

Depending on the state where the wrongful death occurred, the statue of limitations period may begin running from the time the death actually happened. In another state, the statute of limitations may start when the death is discovered to be a wrongful death. There may even be different statute of limitations for victims of wrongful death who did not die right away from the cause of wrongful death. The amount of recovery allowed in a wrongful death claim will also depend on the state in which the wrongful death occurred.

If you have lost a loved one in a wrongful death case, it is important that you speak with a wrongful death attorney immediately who is knowledgeable about your state’s statute of limitations and can advise you on what to do next. An attorney can also help you file your lawsuit immediately to ensure that you are within the statute of limitations.

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Natalee Holloway’s parents have filed a wrongful death suit against two former suspects in the missing Alabama teenager’s case. Holloway had disappeared in 2005 while on a trip with schoolmates. Aruba police had searched for Holloway, but no one has ever been charged for her disappearance.

Holloway, 18, was last seen getting into a car with the Kalpoes and their friend, Joran van der Sloot on May 30, 2005. Holloway’s parents are requesting unspecified damages and a jury trial. They filed the lawsuit one day after the brothers sued the Dr. Phil show for slander and libel.

The Kalpoe brothers claim that a private investigator had secretly taped a conversation with Deepak and aired the audio on the show. They are accusing the show of altering parts of the conversation to “create false, incriminating, and defamatory statements that the plaintiffs engaged in criminal activity against Natalee Holloway.”

In the civil suit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, Beth Twitty and Dave Holloway accuse Satish and Deepak Kalpoe of intentionally, negligently, wantonly” caused fatal injury to their daughter.

Calculating Damages

The law of each state governs the amount of damages recoverable by statutory beneficiaries. Compensatory damages, which are intended to make restitution for the amount of money lost, are the most common damages awarded in wrongful death actions. Plaintiffs who prevail in a wrongful death lawsuit may recover medical and funeral expenses in addition to the amount of economic support they could have received if the decedent had lived and, in some instances, a sum of money to compensate for grief or loss of services or companionship.

Determining the amount of damages in a wrongful death action requires taking into account many variables. To compute compensation, the salary that the decedent could have earned can be multiplied by the number of years he most likely would have lived and can be adjusted for various factors, including inflation. Standard actuarial tables serve as guides for the life expectancy of particular groups identified by age or gender. The decedent’s mental and physical health, along with the nature of his work, can be taken into consideration by a jury.

Damages cannot always be calculated on the basis of potential earnings because not everyone is employed. Courts have set minimum yearly dollar amounts for the worth of an individual’s housekeeping and for child care services. Moreover, an additional recovery might be justified on the basis of grief and loss of companionship.

Punitive damages may be awarded in a wrongful death case if the defendant’s actions were particularly reckless or heinous. Punitive damages are a means of punishing the defendant for her action and are awarded at the discretion of the jury.

Any damages recovered are distributed among the survivors subject to the statutes of each state. Courts frequently divide an award based on the extent of each beneficiary’s loss.

Limitations on Recovery of Damages

Some states limit the amount of money that can be recovered in a wrongful death action. For example, many state and local governments that waive sovereign immunity set a maximum amount of damages that can be recovered for a wrongful death. However, a number of states do not limit the amount of damages for wrongful death.

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