$1.8 Million Settlement Awarded to Ven Johnson Law Client Struck by Police Cruiser
FLINT, Mich., Feb. 13, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- A 30-year-old Washtenaw County man was awarded an $1.8 million settlement for injuries he sustained on September 10, 2015 in an automobile crash with an on-duty Ypsilanti police officer. The officer was traveling through a busy Ypsilanti intersection at twice the speed limit without the use of emergency lights or siren, in direct violation of Michigan law. The victim suffered traumatic brain injury and major orthopedic injuries to the right leg, causing permanent nerve damage resulting in drop foot.
"With years of appeals and the unfair governmental immunity laws in Michigan, it has been a very long road for our client," said attorney Ven Johnson of Ven Johnson Law. "Justice has been slow, but it has ultimately prevailed for our client."
Governmental immunity against tort liability is provided in MCL 691.1407, "Except as otherwise provided in this act, a governmental agency is immune from tort liability if the governmental agency is engaged in the exercise or discharge of a governmental function." One of the very few exceptions to governmental immunity is called, "a governmental vehicle exception" MCL 691.1405 provides: "Governmental agencies shall be liable for bodily injury... resulting from the negligent operation by any officer, ... of the governmental agency, of a motor vehicle of which the governmental agency is owner..."
"This was a case of abuse of power. The officer clearly believed she was above the law when she was excessively speeding without lights and siren," said Tom Waun, law partner, Ven Johnson Law. "Our client's life is forever changed due to the misconduct of the officer."
For more information about Ven Johnson Law, visit www.venjohnsonlaw.com.
SOURCE Ven Johnson Law
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