[bigsmooth]

from WSLS-TV

Family Hit by Accused Drunk Driver Suing
Angela Hatcher / WSLS NewsChannel 10
Dec 12, 2006

A family hurt in an apparent drunk driving crash is suing.

Bedford County authorities say Corey Peters was driving drunk when he hit the Barrick family's mini van last month.

The Barricks are suing Corey and his father James Peters, who they say gave his son the truck.

The family is seeking a total of $18.2 million: $7 million is for daughter Jennifer Barrick, $5 million each for parents Andy and Linda Barrick and $1.2 million for son Josh Barrick.

[bigsmooth]

This is from the lynchburg fishwrap:

Four lawsuits totaling $18.2 million filed on behalf of Barrick family

By Ron Brown
rbrown@newsadvance.com
December 11, 2006

Four lawsuits, asking for a total of $18.2 million in damages, have been filed on behalf of a Forest family injured when a pickup truck - driven by an accused drunken driver - struck their minivan Nov. 5.

The lawsuits were filed in Bedford County Circuit Court on Thursday for each of the four members of the family of Andy and Linda Barrick.

Named as defendants in the suits were Corey Dennis Peters, who has been charged with driving under the influence in connection with the wreck, and his father, James Woodrow Peters, who is accused of providing him with the pickup truck.

Corey Peters, 26, of Big Island has three previous DUI convictions and had a revoked driver’s license at the time of the wreck.

Roanoke attorney Paul G. Beers is representing the Barrick family.

The Barricks and their two children, Jennifer, 15, and Josh, 11, were all injured when the pickup truck rammed the family’s minivan head-on on Waterlick Road in Bedford County.

The family was heading home from Thomas Road Baptist Church. Andy Barrick is the director of alumni affairs for Liberty University.

Since the wreck, Andy, Linda and Josh Barrick have been released from the hospital, although Andy and Linda Barrick are still recovering at home from their injuries.

Josh Barrick has returned to school at Lynchburg Christian Academy.

Jennifer Barrick, who had been in a medically induced coma for several weeks, is now showing signs of waking up at a children’s rehabilitation center in Charlottesville.

She suffered a serious brain injury as a result of the wreck.

One lawsuit, filed specifically on her behalf, asks for $7 million in compensatory and punitive damages from the Peters.

The lawsuits filed on behalf of Andy and Linda Barrick ask for $5 million in damages for each.

The lawsuit filed on behalf of Josh Barrick asks for $1.2 million in damages.

“Corey Peters has an infamous history and habit of driving while intoxicated, causing accidents and otherwise violating the motor vehicle laws of the Commonwealth of Virginia,” the lawsuits said.

The suits claim Peters was not only driving drunk, but also say he was driving too fast and on the wrong side of the road while attempting to elude police just before the wreck occurred.

“James Peters, in entrusting his truck to Corey Peters, acted in wanton and callous disregard for the rights and safety of other motorists,” the suits said.

The lawsuits ask for jury trials.

Virginia State Police have seized Corey Peters’ medical records, particularly those relating to his blood-alcohol content on the night of the wreck.

Peters was critically injured in the wreck. He is in long-term care at Virginia Baptist Hospital. Bedford County Commonwealth’s Attorney Randy Krantz said Monday he is monitoring Peters’ recovery before deciding on additional charges.

A search warrant, obtained by Trooper J.R. Mullins, also sought all treatment records from nurses and physicians who attended to Peters.

The search warrant affidavit was filed under a Virginia criminal code section for vehicular maiming. So far, Peters has not been charged with that offense.

Peters’ driver’s license was revoked for three years in 2004, Bedford County Circuit Court records show. Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles records, on file in the clerk’s office, show Peters has three previous DUI convictions since 2002.

According to DMV records, Peters had a previous wreck that resulted in injuries on June 27, 2003, the same day he was charged with his third DUI.

Campbell County Sheriff Terry Gaddy said moments before the wreck with the Barrick family, a deputy found Peters’ truck in the middle of Waterlick Road near a stoplight soon after receiving word of an earlier hit-and-run on Timberlake Road.

Peters was unresponsive and slumped over the steering wheel.

The deputy tried unsuccessfully to turn off the truck’s engine, but shifted the vehicle into park and depressed the emergency brake, Gaddy said.

Peters woke up, and the deputy asked him to shut off the truck’s engine.

The deputy walked away to talk to the hit-and-run victim, who had followed Peters and called police dispatchers.

Peters sped off, Gaddy said.

When the deputy caught up with Peters’ truck, it had already struck the Barricks’ minivan.

[TDDance234]

Didn't expect that. Not saying it's a good or bad thing, just unexpected.

[bigsmooth]

i do not know how to feel about it, and this soon?? i have to think about it.

[Hold My Own]

I cant wait to see what some of those from the other thread have to say about this



my take, good for them

[bigsmooth]

don't get me wrong, they should get what they can, i just question the timing right now.

[thepostman]

I think its a little much....the man should be punished and pay for all medical bills and such...i am just not a big fan of lawsuits that give people millions of dollars...its not needed at all....

[Sly Fox]

From a legal standpoint, you have to ask for ridiculous sums in order to either get a settlement or a reasonable jury award. Then again, I'm a journalist and not an attorney.

[thepostman]

from a legal standpoint lawyers are greedy and want as much money for themselves as they can get, that is what it comes down to. guarenteed

[badger74]

I wonder how much these folks even have in assets or insurance. If he was at a tavern they could sue them too.

[Hold My Own]

Purple Haze enters stage right:

[Sly Fox]

Purple Haze enters stage right:

Why? Was Peters on his meds and he's liable too?

[mother goose]

good...I hope they get a bundle! The jerk should have never been allowed to drive again. May be an expensive lesson for someone...

[Sly Fox]

Unfortunately the idiots involved in these cases don't seem to learn lessons very well. But I agree, hit him where he won't be able to afford another drink whether he's in the pen or out.

[Baldspot]

For what its worth I handle personal injury lawsuits for an insurance company. Based on the very minimal facts I know, this appears to be a case of receiving bad advice from an attorney to file a suit, at least at this stage of the game. For one thing, its not wise to settle until they have a good idea how well the injured parties will recover. The suit itself can't proceed until they have that figured out and that can take years.

Why file a lawsuit now? Because these type of cases usually get settled out-of-court for policy limits. The attorney, however, automatically jumps his commission once a lawsuit is filed. That means this attorney just increased his take home pay for probably doing very little work. The tortfeasor (guilty party) is also probably judgement proof which means no matter what the verdict, he will only be able to pay his policy limits because he doesn't have 18 million in assets. The attorney, however, still gets a bigger cut of the policy limits just because he filed the suit.

The only way they can come up with the 18 million is to join other parties to the loss, ie the car manufacturer, tire company, bar etc to say there was something defective but these cases still settle out of court for the policy limits.

Hate to see them fork over so much money to an attorney for doing so little when the end result has probably already been determined. Sorry I wrote them so much. I wish them well.

[Libertine]

from a legal standpoint lawyers are greedy and want as much money for themselves as they can get, that is what it comes down to. guarenteed

That's a legal point?

[PAmedic]

good info Baldspot.

the punitive damages are important though, and sometimes that ratchets up the overall judgement request- doesn't it?

Though Jen will quite possibly need long-term care here- and if so, that should be something this family never has to worry about. Along with continued education costs, incl remedial and/or post-grad. What matters is that quality of life must be restored for all 4 of them.

And the genius family member should go down with the defendant for enabling him. Shared guilt there.

[thepostman]

from a legal standpoint lawyers are greedy and want as much money for themselves as they can get, that is what it comes down to. guarenteed

That's a legal point?

yes, because that is was our judicial system has turned into...sad, but true

[SuperJon]

I don't have a problem with them filing a lawsuit. The timing and amount just seem very odd to me.

[Libertine]

from a legal standpoint lawyers are greedy and want as much money for themselves as they can get, that is what it comes down to. guarenteed

That's a legal point?

yes, because that is was our judicial system has turned into...sad, but true

[mrmacphisto]

from a legal standpoint lawyers are greedy and want as much money for themselves as they can get, that is what it comes down to. guarenteed

That's a legal point?

yes, because that is was our judicial system has turned into...sad, but true

You're right there. It's all a big money machine now.

[Baldspot]

The punitive portion is probably why this will get settled out-of-court on behalf of the other driver. The defense will not want to put their client before a local jury. Whether it goes to trial, however, doesn't change how much the defendant has in assets so the defense will probably just offer their limits.

My guess is the attorney is going after a third party and hopes to use the subpoena power of the court to get evidence from a manufacturer to show the accident was due in part to faulty equipment etc.

[PAmedic]

Baldspot may very well be dead on here.

As one FREQUENTLY involved in litigation (both sides of the table) stemming from medical issues, traumatic injuries, MVC's, etc- the legal wrangling is very complicated. Many times the majority of the procedural things HAVE to be accomplished just to get ANY sort of settlement. Jumping thru hoops, kinda thing.

Your average person gets the wrong impression of these suits- very often the plantiff sees little of the award, but have no choice- they MUST litigate or are left to fend for themselves (financially) for the expenses they incur as a result of a situation they didn't create (the initial incident).

These are just SOME of the reasons Tort reform is such a hot-button issue.