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Catholic diocese settles wrongful-death lawsuit during jury selection in … – Kansas City Star

By JUDY L. THOMAS The Kansas City Star
The Kansas City-St. Joseph Diocese has settled a wrongful-death lawsuit for $ 2.25 million with the parents of a boy who allegedly took his own life 30 years ago because of repeated sexual abuse by a Kansas City priest.

File photo Brian Teeman, 14, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound in November 1983 at the family’s home in Independence.
File photo by SHANE KEYSER | The Kansas City Star Donald Teeman (from left), Jackie Teeman, Rosemary Teemanand Jon David Couzens held photos of Brian Teeman in September 2011 outside the headquarters of Catholic Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph as they announced a new civil lawsuit accusing Msgr. Thomas J. O’Brien of causing Brian Teeman’s death in 1983. A civil trial in the wrongful-death lawsuit begins Monday in Jackson County Circuit Court in Independence.

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The settlement — the largest ever for the diocese in a single priest sexual abuse lawsuit — came on Monday afternoon as jury selection was underway for the trial in Jackson County Circuit Court in Independence.
“This is one of the most significant cases we’ve ever worked on,” said Rebecca Randles, the attorney for Donald and Rosemary Teeman, who filed the lawsuit against the diocese and Monsignor Thomas J. O’Brien in 2011 after a man who served as an altar boy with their son, Brian, told them of the alleged abuse. Brian Teeman, 14, died of a gunshot wound in November 1983 at the family’s home in Independence.
“This allows everyone to put this behind them,” Randles said. “It allows closure at this point in time. And it sends a message that no matter how long ago something like this happens, there [...]

By jwj|July 9th, 2013|News|Comments Off|

Sheriff’s Dept. faces wrongful-death suit – Arizona Daily Star

2013-01-16T00:00:00Z 2013-01-16T08:34:54Z Sheriff’s Dept. faces wrongful-death suitKim Smith Arizona Daily Star Arizona Daily Star
Edith “Lynn” Marques remembers deputies passing her and her husband twice on April 1, 2011, with their lights and sirens on. She has no recollection of the crash moments later that took her husband’s life.
Marques took the stand Tuesday in Pima County Superior Court Judge Carmine Cornelio’s courtroom. She and her 11 children filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against the Pima County Sheriff’s Department as a result of the death of her husband, Joseph. Tuesday was the first day of the trial.
Marques’ attorney, James Abraham, told jurors during opening statements that Joseph Marques died because deputies violated a department policy that the safety of the public must take a priority over the arrest of a suspect.
In this case, Abraham said, deputies repeatedly refused to stop chasing a shoplifter – a shoplifter who eventually ran a red light, hitting the Marques vehicle and killing Joseph, 73.
Deputy Pima County Attorney Nancy Davis told jurors the deputies were not pursuing Patrick Gutierrez that afternoon; they were following a robbery suspect.
Eventually, Gutierrez stopped at a stop sign, Davis said.
Unfortunately, there was no way Lt. Scott Martin, who was with Gutierrez at the stop sign, could have predicted Gutierrez was going to take off and run a red light eight seconds later – when he turned on his lights, Davis said.
“The only person responsible (for Marques’ death) is the person who ran the red light, Patrick Gutierrez,” Davis told jurors.
Lynn Marques testified she and Joseph and their youngest child, Andrew, 9, were returning from a weeklong trip to San Diego.
Joseph always took the Ina Road exit to [...]

By jwj|January 16th, 2013|News|Comments Off|