Deceased governor's family seeks new trial (Carnahan)

UPI ^ | 3-18-04

[Indy Pendance]

KANSAS CITY, Kan., March 18 (UPI) -- The family of Kansas Gov. Mel Carnahan has asked for a new trial for punitive damages in the death of Carnahan and his son, it was reported Thursday.

Jackson County jurors awarded the family $4 million in damages last January, much less than $100 million it requested after the fatal plane crash, the Kansas City Star reported Thursday.

Circuit Judge Charles Atwell reduced the amount manufacturer Parker-Hannifin must pay from $4 million to about $2.4 million.

Parker-Hannifin has also filed a motion asking Atwell to set aside the verdicts as unsupported by the evidence.

Carnahan, his son Randy, and a longtime aide died in the crash, which occurred while Carnahan campaigned for a U.S. Senate seat held by John Ashcroft. Carnahan won posthumously and his wife, Jean, was named to the seat.

The key trial issue was whether the company's vacuum pumps failed, cutting power to instruments critical to flight. The instruments tell pilots how planes are positioned relative to the ground.

[krb]

The family of Kansas Gov. Mel Carnahan has asked for a new trial for punitive damages in the death of Carnahan and his son, it was reported Thursday.

I thought Carnahan was from Missourri?

[freedumb2003]

Another bite at the apple? People just get to keep suing and suing until they get what they want?

This kind of thing is what killed Cesna. If they keep holding the strict liability (who knows whether the problem was a design defect or bad maintenance), there will simply be no general aviation in the USA since no one will be making affordable private aircraft.

Typical libs -- looking at those that create capital as a personal piggy bank.

[68skylark]

Hey -- the press doesn't make mistakes! If they say Kansas then they must mean Kansas.

[Indy Pendance]

I did too, but, since the article said Kansas, that's what state I listed.

[AF68]

I guess flying at night, through a bad thunderstorm with a young, incompetant IFR pilot in a rush to scrape up cash from a homosexual group in a closely contested race, had nothing to do with Taxman Carnahan's demise. Typical Rats; it's the evil corporations' fault.

[RepatriatedTexan]

Seems Randy Carnahan was the one at fault. www.cbsnews.com/stories/2002/06/05/politics/main511205.shtml
Cessna is still around, but you're right, these lawsuits are the reason a new 4 place 172 SP cost about $200K

[Cicero]

Democrats are never happy unless someone else pays all their bills.

[Finalapproach29er]

Greed

[Vigilanteman]

Widder Carnahan ought to be grateful. She never would have gotten a free pass to the Senate without the crash. After all power is more important than family.

On the other hand, family makes a good excuse to raid the public coffers. Will these people ever get off the public dole?

[freedumb2003]

The link goes nowhere but I appreciate the attempt.

I honestly thought Cessna was done for, but maybe I was thinking about the 80's when it almost went under -- for just what I said. I haven't heard their name in a long time -- and I know that is from the litigation, since Cessna used to be synonymous with general aviation.