Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
Editorials & Other Articles
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
USA Today: As crash victims' families start calling lawyers, Trump's words may be evidence in suits [View all]
USA Today - As crash victims' families start calling lawyers, Trump's words may be evidence in suits
Nick Penzenstadler
USA TODAY
5:10 a.m. February 1, 2025
Families of the victims in Wednesday’s catastrophic airline collision are in the early stages of filing claims against the government, and their case could receive a boost from high profile comments made by President Trump and members of his cabinet admitting fault.
Lawyers from the nation’s top aviation disaster firm say they’ve already been contacted by some families exploring lawsuits after the disaster near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport on Wednesday that killed 67 people. The firm secured settlements for families of victims in the nation's last major air disaster, the 2009 crash of a Continental Airlines flight in Buffalo that killed 50 people.
Public comments by Trump, Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy, and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth could make their cases stronger if families of victims in this week's crash move forward, according to partners with New York-based Kreindler & Kreindler.
“Duffy basically says: We’re not going to run away from it, we’ll own it, and the president has made statements about the Army helicopter pilot who messed up,” said Justin Green a partner at the firm. “It’ll be interesting to see how the government and this administration handles any efforts to resolve this case. It’s within their power to direct claims be paid swiftly.”
The apparent acceptance of responsibility is a departure from past lawsuits, where government agencies are ultra-cautious about liability and assigning blame, Green said. The transcripts and social media posts are already “part of the fabric of the case,” and could be introduced as evidence, he said.
/snip
Nick Penzenstadler
USA TODAY
5:10 a.m. February 1, 2025
Families of the victims in Wednesday’s catastrophic airline collision are in the early stages of filing claims against the government, and their case could receive a boost from high profile comments made by President Trump and members of his cabinet admitting fault.
Lawyers from the nation’s top aviation disaster firm say they’ve already been contacted by some families exploring lawsuits after the disaster near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport on Wednesday that killed 67 people. The firm secured settlements for families of victims in the nation's last major air disaster, the 2009 crash of a Continental Airlines flight in Buffalo that killed 50 people.
Public comments by Trump, Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy, and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth could make their cases stronger if families of victims in this week's crash move forward, according to partners with New York-based Kreindler & Kreindler.
“Duffy basically says: We’re not going to run away from it, we’ll own it, and the president has made statements about the Army helicopter pilot who messed up,” said Justin Green a partner at the firm. “It’ll be interesting to see how the government and this administration handles any efforts to resolve this case. It’s within their power to direct claims be paid swiftly.”
The apparent acceptance of responsibility is a departure from past lawsuits, where government agencies are ultra-cautious about liability and assigning blame, Green said. The transcripts and social media posts are already “part of the fabric of the case,” and could be introduced as evidence, he said.
/snip
14 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
= new reply since forum marked as read