| Mississippi
Lawyer and Attorney in Mississippi George W.
Healy, IV
LICENSED IN MISSISSIPPI & LOUISIANA 1911
23rd Ave
Gulfport, MS 39501
Telephone: (228) 575-4005
Toll
Free: (800) 858-4549 NEWS Drunken-driving
award sets Louisiana record
by BILL VOELKER staff
writer The Times-Picayune
A Lacombe man who was seriously injured last year
in a head-on collision with a drunken driver in St. Tammany Parish has been awarded
nearly $1.9 million, including a record $1.33 million in punitive damages.
The
federal court jury's punitive damages to Carl Spicer, 42, is nine times larger
than Louisiana's prior apparent record of $150,000 imposed against a drunken driver
after a 1986 crash, also in St. Tammany. Humberto Guerrero, of Dallas,
the driver responsible for the July 12, 1995, accident on U.S. 190 west of Lacombe,
testified he had drunk between five and 10 rum-and cola drinks at a Mandeville
bar and grill about six or seven hours before the crash. Guerrero said
he had passed out at the wheel before veering into the oncoming lane where Spicer
was driving to his construction job with Spartan Building Corp. Spicer,
a husband and father of seven who lives with his family in a three-bedroom home,
suffered injuries to his back, neck and knees, and he said he can no longer stand
up for any length of time and hasn't been able to find work since the accident.
He said he had enjoyed the heavy-construction job he landed two years before the
crash, after having spent 19 years in kitchen and custodial work at Southeast
Louisiana Hospital near Mandeville. When he receives the award, Spicer
said he'll probably add a wing to his house, which sits on an acre of land, so
the family can spread out and the children can get rid of their bunk beds. And
how did a federal jury in New Orleans arrive at a punitive figure of $1,330,209
for Spicer after this month's three-day trial? Spicer's attorney, George
W. Healy, IV, said a toxicologist determined Guerrero had a blood alcohol level
of .24 at the time of the accident, 2.4 times higher than the .10 threshold for
being legally drunk. "So I asked the jury to send a message to all
who would recklessly endanger people's lives on the highway: multiply the compensatory
damages you find by that 2.4 factor, and that should be the exemplary (punitive)
bill," Healy said. The jury bought Healy's argument, and the U.S.
District Judge Mary Ann Vial Lemmon issued the full judgement:
$554,245
for physical and mental pain and suffering, physical disability, loss of life's
enjoyments, lost earnings and medical expenses.
$1.33 million for the DWI-related
injuries "caused by the wanton and reckless disregard of the rights and safety
of others." The final figure: $1,884,463.60, plus interest, which pushes
the award above $2.1 million.
The jury foreman, who did not want to be identified,
said the six member panel was unanimous on both the compensatory and punitive
amounts. "Based on the judge's charge and how the statute reads, we found
both figures were proper, especially since the plaintiff can't work the way he
used to," he said.
There are four relevant factors in weighing punitive
damages, as Judge Lemmon laid them out for the jury:
Nature and extent
of the harm to the plaintiff.
Wealth and financial situation of the defendant.
Character of the conduct involved.
Extent to which such conduct offends
a sense of justice and propriety.
The verdict was returned against Guerrero,
a 29-year-old Dallas lawyer, and State Farm Insurance Co., which had insured him
for $1.1 million, according to St. Tammany records.
If State Farm pays
up to the limit of his policy, Guerrero could be responsible for covering the
other $1 million and accumulated interest. Guerrero could not be reached for comment
in Dallas. State Farm's attorney had recommended settlement at $375,000
but no formal offer was ever made, Healy said. Before trial, Spicer offered to
settle for $525,000. Guerrero apparently fared better when facing criminal
charges related to the accident in 22nd Judicial District Court in Covington.
On Jan. 16, state Judge John W. Greene allowed Guerrero to plead no contest
to charges to driving while intoxicated, negligent injury and improper use of
a highway lane. For a first DWI conviction, state law calls for a fine
of between $125 and $500 and a jail sentence of between 10 days and six months.
On all three accounts, Greene gave Guerrero a suspended sentence of more
than 100 days in jail, fines totaling a few hundred dollars, and two years probation.
During probation, the judge ordered, Guerrero must attend a driver improvement
course, successfully complete a substance abuse program with appropriate follow-up,
do four eight-hour days of public service work for St. Tammany Parish, and perform
240 other hours of community service. But Jennifer Holley, a representative
of Mothers Against Drunk Drivers who attended Guerrero's no-contest plea and sentencing,
said this week she was told by St. Tammany probation officer Shonnie Oswald that
Guerrero has not completed the special conditions the court ordered. However,
Oswald would not elaborate, saying the extent of the defendant's compliance or
non-compliance is confidential, Holley said. Jay McCreary, the New Orleans
attorney who represented Guerrero and State Farm, said after the civil trial,
"We're disappointed with the outcome, but we're preparing all post-trial
motions available to our client." Drew Ranier of Lake Charles, president
of the Louisiana Trial Lawyers Association, said the nearly $2 million verdict
is a "good sign" that those guilty of drunken driving will be held accountable.
"It may reflect a sea change in people's attitude," said Ranier,
citing what he called Louisiana's "cultural tolerance for drinking and driving."
In St. Tammany, officials have become increasingly concerned about drunken
driving. Last month, Slidell passed a law requiring bars to close from 2 to 9
a.m. daily, and the Police Jury will soon consider a measure requiring lounges
throughout unincorporated St. Tammany to close from 2 to 6 a.m.
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