A jury has granted a $20 million award to the family of a woman who lost her life in a DUI crash caused by a former elementary school principal in Lancaster.
The wrongful death lawsuit was filed by the family of the 29-year-old victim against the 40-year-old principal responsible for the woman's death in 2018.
On November 15, 2018, the defendant, while intoxicated, was driving on 50th Street East near Avenue P in the Palmdale area when she swerved into oncoming traffic, resulting in a head-on collision with the victim's vehicle, as stated by the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office. The victim died instantly.
Attorneys representing the victim's family revealed that the defendant, after being transported to the hospital, tested for a blood alcohol level nearly three times the legal limit.
On February 4, 2020, the defendant was convicted of second-degree murder and gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, receiving a prison sentence of 15 years to life.
The defendant, who lived in Pearblossom, was a former teacher and served as the principal at Enterprise Elementary School at the time of the accident.
Following the jury's decision, the victim's attorneys issued a statement expressing frustration with insurance companies like Geico, which prolong these clearly liability cases for years to avoid rightful compensation for their clients. The attorney also emphasized that the defendant knowingly endangered everyone on the road by choosing to drive after a night of heavy drinking, resulting in the tragic loss of the victim's promising future due to her reckless actions.
