Judges listen to arguments at Blinn on $27M jury verdict against McDonald's
BRYAN -- The Texas 10th Court of Appeals heard arguments at the Blinn College Student Center in Bryan on Wednesday regarding a Brazos County jury decision to hold McDonald's responsible for the deaths of two students in 2012.
Two years ago, jurors awarded $27 million in a lawsuit after finding McDonald's negligence to be 97 percent responsible for the deaths of 18-year-old Denton Ward and Lauren Bailey Crisp, 19.
Appellate attorneys for McDonald's said the jury got it wrong during the 2014 trial -- that the restaurant chain shouldn't be held responsible for the deaths of the two students, who died in a car accident 11 minutes after a fight at the restaurant left one of them badly beaten and in need of emergency medical treatment. The plaintiffs' attorneys, representing the families of Ward and Crisp, said if McDonald's would have done more to prevent a culture of disorderly conduct that it had let fester for at least a year before the event, the fight and following car accident would have never happened.
Ward and his friend, Tanner Giesen, were attacked in February 2012 by a group of at least 10 men outside of the McDonald's at 801 University Drive. Ward and Crisp -- who was tending to Ward in the car on the way to the hospital -- were pronounced dead after the driver of their vehicle ran a red light while attempting to get Ward and Giesen to the hospital.
Read more: http://www.theeagle.com/news/local/judges-listen-to-arguments-at-blinn-on-decision-against-mcdonald/article_53363404-8f72-5add-af3d-805e50e09287.html