Recommendation Concerning Approval of Proposed Settlement in the Matter of Carlene D. Morris v. First Transit, Inc. and Escambia County, Case No. 2018 CA 000411.
That the Board take the following action:
A. Approve the proposed settlement of payment of $25,000.00 by Escambia County (ECAT) to Carlene D. Morris in exchange for execution of a mutual release of all claims. RLI Insurance will fund the settlement in full.
B. Authorize the Chairman of the Board to execute the mutual release of all claims, which is acceptable in wording after review by the County Attorney's Office; and
C. Authorize retained insurance counsel to execute a stipulation for dismissal with prejudice, once the mutual release of all claims is executed by Ms. Morris. |
Carlene D. Morris was a passenger on a bus owned by ECAT (County) and operated by First Transit, Inc. She claimed that when she stepped down from a raised portion of the rear seating area, she stepped in a puddle of water which caused her to slip and fall. She alleged that the water came from rain and stormwater which was entering the bus through its rear entry door due to a bad seal. Although video was taken of the operation of the bus hours before the accident, and at the time of the accident, it appears that any rainwater was draining through a rear port on the rear door as designed. Our retained insurance counsel asserted that it is not an unreasonably dangerous condition for water to be present on the floor of a public transit bus during a hard rainstorm.
Escambia County as the owner of ECAT, a publicly-owned mass transit system, entered into a Management Services Agreement with First Transit to manage and operate ECAT. The agreement provided that First Transit was to maintain all ECAT buses. In addition, First Transit agreed to indemnify, provide liability insurance and name Escambia County as an additional insured. RLI is the liability insurance carrier. The County asserted a crossclaim against First Transit, alleging that the County had no connection with the operation and maintenance of ECAT, as that was delegated to First Transit under the management agreement. Furthermore, the bus operators, maintenance staff and inspectors were all First Transit employees at the time of the accident further attenuating any connection between the County and the operation of ECAT.
Ms. Morris claimed that she injured her head and neck and aggravated a pre-existing lower back condition from the fall. She continues to experience pain from the accident and her medical bills are quite large. Her medical expenses are approximately $261,761.00, related to the injuries from her accident. Medicare has a lien against any recovery obtained by Ms. Morris, which, as of three months ago, was approximately $140,000.00.
Under the terms of the settlement, First Transit will pay $100,000.00 to Ms. Morris, and the County, through its liability carrier, RLI Insurance, will pay $25,000.00. The County will not be liable for any payments under the settlement. The County will release its crossclaim against First Transit as part of the settlement.
Our insurance counsel, Ganesh Chatani, who is a shareholder in the firm of Banker, Lopez, Gassler, located in Tallahassee, Florida, is recommending that this proposed settlement be approved by the Board of County Commissioners. Attached is a copy of the Mutual Release of All Claims which will be executed by Ms. Morris and all parties. |