Bragging Rights
08/07/08 17:11
Sometimes
the work of a personal injury attorney feels like
toiling away without any reward. Then, on occasion,
being a lawyer has its good days too. I (Pete
Summerill here) am lucky enough to have prevailed
in the cases of Dexter v. Bosko (right of inmate to
bring civil rights action under Utah Constitution)
and Bybee v. Abdulla (preventing a doctor from
forcing wrongful death heirs into private
pay-to-play arbitration for claim of medical
malpractice). Now, those two cases are getting some
recognition as well: Bybee v. Abdulla was just
cited in the American Association for Justice’s
monthly magazine Trial and Dexter v. Bosko will be
featured locally in an article appearing in the
Utah Association for Justice’s publication Utah
Trial Journal. I hope that these decisions will go
a long way toward preserving the rights of wrongful
death heirs and the civil rights of prisoners well
into the future.
Utah State Supreme Court - Dexter v. Bosko et. al.
06/11/08 08:57
We
recently obtained a favorable ruling from the Utah
Supreme Court upholding the right of an inmate to
sue for damages when guards failed to seat belt him
prior to freeway travel. Kelvin Dexter was ejected
from a Ford 15 passenger van when the van rolled
over. Shackled at the wrists, waist and legs, Mr.
Dexter could not fasten his own seat belt. The
guard/driver refused to seat belt the inmates. Mr.
Dexter was ejected when the guard/driver lost
control of the vehicle while reaching for a soda or
bag of chips at freeway speed. The van rolled
several times, ejecting Mr. Dexter. The rollover
severed Mr. Dexter's spinal cord, rendering him a
quadriplegic. Eventually, Mr. Dexter developed
complications as a result of his quadriplegia and
died, leaving behind a wife and children. The Utah
Supreme Court recognized that the Utah Constitution
prohibits exposing inmates to "unreasonably harsh,
strict, or severe treatment [or] unnecessarily
exposed to an increased risk of serious harm."
Because the failure to provide the fundamental and
basic safety of a seat belt exposed Mr. Dexter to
unreasonable and unnecessary risk of harm, the
court held that the guards may be held liable for
the harm caused by their refusal to seat belt Mr.
Dexter. The full opinion can be read here:
Dexter v. Bosko, et.
al. (pdf).