[Fast Eddie]

Car owner who left Jeep at dealership gets sued after worker dies during oil change

FOX 2: "You're suing the owner of the car who's getting his oil changed who did nothing in this case?" "I have to do that," Femminineo said.

www.fox2detroit.com

 

[AceHanlon]

Strange he can't sue the boss but has to sue the owner of the vehicle. Horrible situation either way.

 

[1969 300]

How the hell would this even be taken up by the court? I would love to see the legal precedent.

I am guessing that it could be one of several things that would allow it to pass legal muster:

1) The plaintiff may be trying to collect from the defendant's insurance company since it was the defendant's vehicle that caused the death.
2) The owner of the Jeep was perhaps an employee of the dealership and knew the technician did not have a driver's license or know how to drive a stick.
3) The defendant modified the Jeep
4) The lawyer is trying to force a settlement with the dealer knowing that the defendant will turn around and sue the dealer should any judgement go against him or her.

Either way, it is scary to think that something like this can happen. "Come into our dealer for our oil change special- and spend tens of thousands of dollars defending yourself for something we did." It does make the dealer look pretty damn bad.

 

[valiant67]

There are lots of stupid laws on the books. Cases like this are because of laws that protect one class, so the lawyers look for someone else to sue.

 

[keitho]

Car owner who left Jeep at dealership gets sued after worker dies during oil change

FOX 2: "You're suing the owner of the car who's getting his oil changed who did nothing in this case?" "I have to do that," Femminineo said.

www.fox2detroit.com

The family of the deceased can sue because the dealership broke the law by knowingly hiring someone without a license and letting them drive

the owner of the vehicle should sue the dealership for emotional pain and suffering

 

[sickboy]

Does one need a license to move a vehicle on private property?
(ps, it’s Fox News, might as well be from “weekly world news”)

 

[valiant67]

One does not need a license to move a car on private property.

 

[valiant67]

Does one need a license to move a vehicle on private property?
(ps, it’s Fox News, might as well be from “weekly world news”)

You do realize that a local Fox TV station reporting is not Fox News, don't you?

 

[06PTElectricBlue]

Lawyers will look for any reason to sue.

Before reading the full story, I thought this may be a case where there was some kind of recall for the vehicle for unexpectedly jumping out of park, and that the owner failed to get a recall completed on his vehicle. But that's not the case.

The lawyer will be taking on the car owner's insurance company. If anything happens, the insurance company may settle it to make the issue go away.

I see this case going nowhere. The dealership had care, custody and control of his vehicle. The dealership is responsible for the death.

In fact, if there were any damages to the vehicle, the owner could sue the dealership for those repairs.

 

[GP49]

The lawyer will be taking on the car owner's insurance company. If anything happens, the insurance company may settle it to make the issue go away.

Exactly. The b̶l̶o̶o̶d̶s̶u̶c̶k̶e̶r̶ lawyer files a nuisance lawsuit and the insurance company settles because it's less trouble than going to court. The b̶l̶o̶o̶d̶s̶u̶c̶k̶e̶r̶ lawyer gets his share of the settlement for doing very little work. If the b̶l̶o̶o̶d̶s̶u̶c̶k̶e̶r̶ lawyer can find enough clients to do that all day, it's a path to prosperity.

 

[valiant67]

Now stop and think about this:
1) How much is this lawsuit for?
2) What are the caps on the car owner's insurance policy?
I'll bet the first number is much higher than the second number.

 

[chuzz]

Lawyers are as much of the scourge of the Earth as politicians. As a matter-of-fact, most politicians ARE lawyers. LOL I honestly don't see how any judge would even consider such a ridiculous lawsuit as this. BUT, they're supposed to follow and uphold the laws on the books, so I'll be curious as to how this turns out.

 

[multimopes]

I think this demonstrates how asinine this world has become. If the law suit does win the case the cost of the owners insurance will likely increase as well. I think the car owner should counter sue the lawyer! Better yet, I think they should sue God; after all, he created this mess by giving man a brain, lol!
"Beam me up Scotty, there is no sanity left in this world!" 🤪

 

[sickboy]

You do realize that a local Fox TV station reporting is not Fox News, don't you?

Is this wjbk fox 2 Detroit? Wikipedia has it listed as a Fox News affiliate.

 

[68RT]

This is a state industrial accident issue for sure. There will be money coming from them to the deceased family but not that much. The lawyer should get an "A" for creativity and a stern rebuke from the judge for using it. The owner should get ALL COSTS reimbursed and some extra for being brought to court falsely (IMO).

 

[Dave Z]

Is this wjbk fox 2 Detroit? Wikipedia has it listed as a Fox News affiliate.

Local affiliates have their own news which is not part of the usual corporate talking points. In this case the story appears to be accurate.

They really should have interjected some knowledge into this: “"He starts the car, removes his foot from the clutch, and you know what happens? The Jeep jumps and kills my client," said attorney David Femminineo” - you know, like, “Cars with manual transmissions are designed to move forward when the clutch is released.”

The comment by the writer “That’s the law.” shows they were willing to interject their own ignorance opinion into the story. A good reporter would have gone to another lawyer or perhaps a state authority for a comment on whether that makes sense and what part of the law they might be quoting.

Instead they got the entire story from the one lawyer - which is piss-poor reporting, even for a TV station (of any network).

I appreciate that no allpar person went on a long rant about bad government. We have no idea if the judge will dismiss this case instantly. We have no idea if there really is a Michigan law allowing this. Nothing but the word of one morally bankrupt lawyer.

Shame bar associations don't kick people out more easily.

 

[valiant67]

Is this wjbk fox 2 Detroit? Wikipedia has it listed as a Fox News affiliate.

Yes, an affiliate with their own independent local reporting just like an ABC, CBS, or NBC affiliate. CSB, Fox, ABC, NBC don't manage the local news coverage of their affiliates.

 

[codypet]

Local affiliates have their own news which is not part of the usual corporate talking points. In this case the story appears to be accurate.

They really should have interjected some knowledge into this: “"He starts the car, removes his foot from the clutch, and you know what happens? The Jeep jumps and kills my client," said attorney David Femminineo” - you know, like, “Cars with manual transmissions are designed to move forward when the clutch is released.”

The comment by the writer “That’s the law.” shows they were willing to interject their own ignorance opinion into the story. A good reporter would have gone to another lawyer or perhaps a state authority for a comment on whether that makes sense and what part of the law they might be quoting.

Instead they got the entire story from the one lawyer - which is piss-poor reporting, even for a TV station (of any network).

I appreciate that no allpar person went on a long rant about bad government. We have no idea if the judge will dismiss this case instantly. We have no idea if there really is a Michigan law allowing this. Nothing but the word of one morally bankrupt lawyer.

Shame bar associations don't kick people out more easily.

I will point out that the local affiliates may have corporate owners like Sinclair that do require certain stories to be aired to push a narrative. Not saying that's occurring in this case, but it is possible in other stories.

 

[1969 300]

Owner of Jeep is sued for $15M by family of mechanic

Jeffrey Hawkins, 42, a married father-of-four, was killed on March 13, 2020, while changing the Jeep's oil at Rochester Hills Chrysler Jeep Dodge dealership in Michigan.

www.dailymail.co.uk

Better explanation...

 

[valiant67]

I will point out that the local affiliates may have corporate owners like Sinclair that do require certain stories to be aired to push a narrative. Not saying that's occurring in this case, but it is possible in other stories.

This is not a national story pushed down from above.