Thread: VA-Wrongful death suit filed in fatal crash (IA)

Wrongful death suit filed in fatal crash

Illegal immigrant is charged in May 24 wreck that killed two

Saturday, Jul 19, 2008 - 12:30 AM

By MARK BOWES
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER

An illegal immigrant charged with killing two people in a South Richmond car crash now faces a $2.3 million wrongful-death suit filed by the family of one of the victims.

The administrators of the estate of Kathryn L. Jones, who was fatally injured in the May 24 wreck, also has named as a defendant the construction company for which Carmen Alejandro Garcia-Hernandez was employed.

Garcia-Hernandez was driving a pickup truck registered to R.J. Biringer Construction Co. Inc., whose owner, Ronald J. Biringer, is under federal indictment for transporting illegal immigrants.

Richmond police allege that Garcia-Hernandez was driving the truck when it ran off Snead Road at 11:19 p.m. and hit a parked car, which spun around and hit two people standing next to it.

The bystanders, Jones, 44, and Joseph Owens, 40, of Alberta in Brunswick County, were taken to VCU Medical Center, where they were pronounced dead at 1:13 a.m., according to police.

Jones, a native of South Hill and the mother of two children, lived in the neighborhood were the crash occurred and was attending a house-warming party when she was struck, said Charles H. Cuthbert Jr., her attorney. She had been employed several years as a security guard for Wackenhut Corp., he added.

After the crash, police said Garcia-Hernandez, 28, tried to flee the scene on foot, but witnesses detained him until officers arrived. He was indicted June 9 on two counts of aggravated involuntary manslaughter, driving while intoxicated and felony hit-and-run driving.

According to the lawsuit, Garcia-Hernandez had a blood-alcohol level of 0.15, nearly twice the legal limit of 0.08.

His employer, Ronald Biringer, was indicted March 19 by a federal grand jury in Richmond on a single count of transporting illegal immigrants to Fort Lee on Jan. 14. He was arrested a day later and released on bond.

He had been scheduled to stand trial Thursday in U.S. District Court, but his case apparently has been put on hold indefinitely. Several court officials and Biringer's attorney say the case is now under seal, but they all declined to elaborate.

The case has disappeared from the federal court docket and documents related to Biringer's indictment, originally posted on the federal judiciary's official Web site, have been expunged completely.

"I was really perplexed as to why the federal record was sealed," said Cuthbert, who also was rebuffed by court officials. "I cannot imagine that this case implicates national security in any way.

The lawsuit suggests that Garcia-Hernandez had permission to drive the Biringer company truck at the time of the crash. "At all relevant times," the suit says, "Mr. Garcia-Hernandez was an agent or employee of R.J. Biringer Construction Co. Inc., and was acting within the course and scope of such agency and employment."

A day after the fatal crash, Biringer reported to Powhatan County police that Garcia-Hernandez had taken the Ford truck without authorization from the company's office at 1730 Douthit Court, off U.S. 60 in eastern Powhatan. He reported the truck had been missing since Friday, May 23, a day before the wreck.

Steven Bancroft, a Northern Virginia attorney representing Biringer's company in the lawsuit, couldn't be reached for comment yesterday.


Contact Mark Bowes at (804) 649-6450 or mbowes@timesdispatch.com.

http://www.inrich.com/cva/ric/news.apx. ... -0102.html

WE NEED FAR MORE OF THESE. I WOULD LIKE TO SEE JAMIEL SHAW'S FAMILY SUE, THE MN BUS VICTIMS FAMILIES, THE NEWARK VICTIMS FAMILIES, AND ON AND ON.

This case could set a precedent. If every crime victim of illegals would legallt take to task the employer ( if relevent) along with the politicans of their locality ( if they suported illegals) the finanical impact could move the illegal employers to discontinue their criminal hiring practices.

To SEAL this Stinks . Some where some one is wheeling and dealing to keep this quiet .
I Totally agree with Gogo . Let the Dogs loose

This case could set a precedent. If every crime victim of illegals would legallt take to task the employer ( if relevent) along with the politicans of their locality ( if they suported illegals) the finanical impact could move the illegal employers to discontinue their criminal hiring practices

I agree. They are trying to use this train of thought in dealing with gang members here. It's a club, you belong, the master or owner is responsible for all those under him.

With freedom comes responsibility, with responsibility comes power. With power comes accountability.

The lawsuit suggests that Garcia-Hernandez had permission to drive the Biringer company truck at the time of the crash. "At all relevant times," the suit says, "Mr. Garcia-Hernandez was an agent or employee of R.J. Biringer Construction Co. Inc., and was acting within the course and scope of such agency and employment."

So now R.J. Biringer does not want connections to Mr. Garcia-Hernandez.
But having an illegal employee was breaking immigration laws and that was fine with Biringer, though. Both these people need to pay and do jail time for the many crimes: starting with murder.

And case law has probably set a precedent that a company vehicle driven by an employee in an accident deems employee and company liable.

Traitor - illegal employers is it worth hiring illegals and having additional criminal charges brought against you in addition to a wrongful death suit.

The case has disappeared from the federal court docket and documents related to Biringer's indictment, originally posted on the federal judiciary's official Web site, have been expunged completely.

Hmmm... It appears that someone is trying to cover up some facts or buy some time. Whatever. Something stinks.

After the crash, police said Garcia-Hernandez, 28, tried to flee the scene on foot, but witnesses detained him until officers arrived.

This is typical behavior of an illegal alien who is always running and hiding in the shadows because they broke the law.

I've sent an excerpt and a link to IRLI. Let's see of their attorney can shed some light on this.

A day after the fatal crash, Biringer reported to Powhatan County police that Garcia-Hernandez had taken the Ford truck without authorization from the company's office at 1730 Douthit Court, off U.S. 60 in eastern Powhatan. He reported the truck had been missing since Friday, May 23, a day before the wreck.

He doesn't report that the truck was "missing" until AFTER his illegal alien had already killed the two? Riiiight, like a business owner would take a WEEK to notice one of his trucks was gone? LOL!