Syracuse, NY – A judge has ordered New York state to pay $3.5 million to the estate of an Air Force retiree who was killed eight years ago when his car plunged off a snowy interstate highway overpass in Syracuse.
Join our WhatsApp groupSubscribe to our Daily Roundup Email
The Post-Standard of Syracuse reports (http://bit.ly/UQYlHv ) that a state Court of Claims judge ordered the state to pay Col. William Gardner’s two adult sons for his “wrongful death” caused by the Department of Transportation’s failure to clear away snow on Interstate 81.
The 50-year-old Gardner was driving on I-81 in January 2004 when his car spun out of control and hit snow piled against a guardrail, sending the vehicle off the bridge and onto the ground 50 feet below.
Gardner’s sons sued the state, claiming the DOT was negligent for allowing snow to build up against the guardrail.
That gets the lawyer about 1.2 mil. The nobel laureate in chemistry Lefkowitz has to share a 1.2 mil prize, so he gets only 600K. The doctor contributed far more to society than the ambulance chaser. Why does he get less?
Can I sue Frosty the Snowman because I missed work during the blizzard?
I am not a lawyer and derive no income from any lawyer in my family.
After stating the above I can say that I appreciate lawyers and lawsuits because they bring results. The lawsuit is probably paid once, if at all. The people in charge of the snow fiasco will probably come up with better plans that will make travel safer for the future.
To paraphrase #1 ,
The LAWYER WILL LEAD TO A FAR LARGER CONTRIBUTION to society than YOU THINK.. Why SHOULD he get less
I live in brkln & i worked in rockland i was stuck in the snow (going back 2 winters when they failed 2 clear the snow)didnt get home till the next night… can i sue some1???
I’d like to respond to some of the sarcastic comments, regarding this judgement. It is not a laughing matter, when municipal, county, and state governments, fail to effectively salt and plow roads, in an effort to save some money. They seem to justify their inaction every winter by stating “We ran out of salt, our men have worked 12 hour shifts, the equipment broke down, we weren’t aware of the problem”, etc. Nearly five years ago, on a major four lane thoroughfare in my community, the local government failed to effectively plow a street, and left black ice on the roadway. There was no warning to motorists, regarding the dangerous condition of that roadway. My car (which is a rear wheel drive), essentially lost control, and started drifting into oncoming traffic. It was only by the grace of Hashem that I was fortunately (with seconds to spare) able to steer into a side street, and avoid being struck by oncoming traffic. In fact, I made a speech at my local Shul, this past Yom Tov, and mentioned that incident, when I told the congregants to appreciate life, because it is so fragile.
Snow on the ground? Drive cautiously, well below the speed limit, if drive you must. Sue fellow citizens/taxpayers for snow? A real rip-off of us all. What jurisdiction has the funding to keep roads spotless?