Posted on 04/06/2013 10:41:34 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
A wrongful death suit filed by the parents of black teenager Trayvon Martin who was shot to death by neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman has been settled, according to documents filed in a Florida court yesterday.
From Orlando Sentinel:
Trayvon Martin's parents have settled a wrongful-death claim for an amount thought to be more than $1 million against the homeowners association of the Sanford subdivision where their teenage son was killed.
Their attorney, Benjamin Crump, filed that paperwork at the Seminole County Courthouse, a portion of which was made public Friday.
In the five pages of the settlement that were available for public review, the settlement amount had been marked out. Lower in the agreement, the parties specified that they would keep that amount confidential.
When asked during an earlier interview whether the amount was more than $1 million, Crump said: "I have no comment on that subject ... I know you did not get that from me." Trayvon was shot to death by Neighborhood Watch volunteer George Zimmerman at the Retreat at Twin Lakes townhomes in Sanford on Feb. 26, 2012. Zimmerman served as head of the Neighborhood Watch and called police that evening, describing Trayvon as suspicious. He has said the teen attacked him and he fired in self-defense.
The community-association manager, Kent Taylor, did not return phone calls from the Orlando Sentinel about the settlement. Neither did its attorney, Thomas R. Slaten Jr.
Robert Taylor is founding partner of Taylor & Carls P.A., a law firm that represents homeowner associations but has no connection to the Retreat at Twin Lakes.
"When claims are filed, they're filed against anybody who could possibly have any culpability," he said. Trayvon's parents must have concluded that Zimmerman's homeowners association did, he said, thus the claim.
(Excerpt) Read more at americanthinker.com ...
Special assessment time (if insurance doesn’t handle it, but even them the deductable is probably huge).
I certainly would especially if found not guilty. And sue every single last news outlet that badmouthed him (especially NBC) and sue even Obama if possible for enflaming the situation. I never seen a guy so maligned in my life for self defense. The evidence is overwhelming that he was attacked, was screaming for his life, and from day 1 he’s been portrayed as something akin to a KKK member.
Ya, I think that Zimmerman and his lawyers will be quite busy the next decade. I hope Trayvon’s family will enjoy the money. Not. They better spend it on a good lawyer or two or three.
You beat me to that comment! Trayvon, worth more dead than alive!
I read, over at the Treehouse, that there was a clause that stated that the settlement was strictly to avoid litigation, and not signifying any guilt or culpability.
Their attorneys will get at least 1/3 PLUS costs. Bet on that!
Raise a punk. Get a free million. It’s like the lottery, only better because you get more publicity.
That’s typically how these settlements work. The bigger issue is that the “culpability” they’ve accepted is for Zimmerman — which means he’s next at the plaintiff’s table.
I may be wrong, but I haven’t seen any indication that Crump released any of this information.
I bet his parents have insured themselves for years and have great life, health, liability insurance policies...!!
Until we all just decide to have no liabiliby insurance and we’re worth nothing to speak of this will go on. Criminal’s and their families will prosper and we’ll keep paying higher premiums for this crappy way lawyers earn their fancy life.
Illegals do this all the time. They have no life or auto insurance so if you are at fault in a car accident they’ve won the lotto.
We’re a pretty sick nation.
That is now debatable. See Post #15
The big news was the settlement and the trigger for that was Crump’s filing the redacted settlement papers with the Court. Copies were said to have been delivered to the Defense and the Judge.
Next came the news that Nelson gave Crump 10 days to show why these settlement papers should remain confidential.
Now apparently they have been withdrawn. And the Defense said that they never got their copy.
So if a Crump files papers with the Court and then withdraws them, were they ever filed with the Court in the first place????
If you are on the HOA insurance company side, factor in:
1. Cost to litigate up to trial.
2. Cost of trial.
3. Likely hood of a judgement.
4. If judgement is negative, then cost to appeal.
The Martin’s attorney knows the risks and factors into his advice. He wants to settle at step 1.
So I would not read much into the amount speculation. Given the recent news on the case, sentiment was going the HOA’s way. My guess is low six figures. Easily covered by the policy. No HOA special assessment.
Block party!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
If the settlement was months ago, and the press knew it (refer to unspecified press interview with O'Mara, sometime in February), but the press didn't report the settlement when it learned about it - does that mean the settlement was reached in April? Or does it mean that the press is full of lying cockroaches?
The most recent entries on the Zimmerman criminal docket are:
04/05/2013 LETT LETTER FROM THE CLERK'S OFFICE TO ATTORNEY BENJAMIN CRUMP REGARDING NOTICE OF 04/05/2013 LETT CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATIONI suspect the court has invited Crump to withdraw the filing.
AH!.. The GREAT Martin Honkyfication Scam...
Honky or not Honky you can now be finacially raped once Honkyfied..
the settlement is discoverable and is subject to court order disclosure regardless of confidentiality.
While I agree that in the entire universe of possible legal action, it is discoverable; I respectfully disagree that it has any bearing at all in the criminal case at hand, but I'm quite open to a citation for the opposite proposition.
As for disclosing the "secret" parts, courts are generally protective of secrets, provided they are legal secrets. Plenty of trade secret cases are conducted, and the secrets are kept, well, secret. The out of court settlement has a similar nature. It is a private, legal deal.
I'm not buying any of it. It shows up the day after the Writ and none of the people who were supposed to get copies got them. And the media makes a bigger deal out of a document that they can't and won't show us, that was supposedly told them 2 months ago, than the Writ that could turn the case upside down.
Show me the papers and I'll believe the cockroaches.
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