Limo company fights wrongful death suit

Prosecuting a wrongful death case in New York requires proof and expertise. Overcoming defenses posed by the alleged negligent party may also constitute an essential aspect of these cases.

The widow of former CBS “60 Minutes” reporter Bob Simon, who died in a Feb. 11 limousine crash on the West Side Highway, filed a wrongful death suit last month against the company that owed the limo. The limousine driver swiped another car and crashed into a barrier on the highway.

The 73-year-old Simon suffered a massive head injury in the fatal accident and first responders had to cut up the limousine to remove him. He was later pronounced dead after being transported to a local hospital.

His wife, Francoise Marie Simon, alleged that both defendants caused this fatality. She charged that the limousine driver should not have been permitted to drive because, according to the suit, he had a history of dangerous, unsafe, careless, erratic and unsafe driving and the limo company previously fired the driver. He also had multiple convictions and, according to the suit, his driver’s license was suspended nine times. The driver suffered two broken legs in this crash.

The limousine company, however, filed papers in the Manhattan Supreme Court containing allegations that any injuries that Simon suffered were caused by his culpable conduct of failing to use or improperly using the vehicle’s seatbelts. The company charged that this was culpable conduct and that Simon knew the risks and dangers of riding in that vehicle.

Victims of an auto accident and their families should make sure to understand their rights following a car accident.

Source: New York Daily News, “Limo company claims Bob Simon is responsible for their own death, not their driver,” Dareh Gregorian, July 24, 2015