Wal-Mart says lack of seat belts puts Tracy Morgan and others at fault in crash
Tracy Morgan at a performance in April 2014, before the crash. Image from Randy Miramontez / Shutterstock.com.
Wal-Mart has struck back at 30 Rock actor and comedian Tracy Morgan and others suing the company over a fatal six-car crash in New Jersey in June.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Wal-Mart filed a response Monday in New Jersey federal district court blaming Morgan and others for not wearing their seatbelts.
The accident, which occurred on the New Jersey Turnpike in June, happened after a Wal-Mart truck collided with a limousine carrying Morgan, Morgan’s assistant Jeffrey Millea, comedian Ardie Fuqua and comedian James McNair. McNair was killed, and Millea, Fuqua and Morgan were all injured.
Wal-Mart, in its filed response, stated that the injuries suffered by Morgan and others “were caused, in whole or in part, by plaintiffs’ failure to properly wear an appropriate available seatbelt restraint device” and continued, “By failing to exercise ordinary care in making use of available seat belts, upon information and belief, plaintiffs acted unreasonably and in disregard of plaintiffs’ own best interests.”
“When a tractor-trailer hits your vehicle, at a dead stop, at 65 miles an hour, seat belts have nothing to do with it,” said attorney Benedict Morelli, who represents Morgan, Fuqua and Millea, in an interview with the New York Times’ ArtsBeat blog.
Morgan and the other plaintiffs originally filed suit in July, claiming that Wal-Mart’s truck driver Kevin Roper, was tired and fatigued after having been awake for more than 24 hours at the time of the accident. The plaintiffs also claim Roper had driven 700 miles even before his shift had begun on the day of the accident.
“Wal-Mart was careless and negligent in the ownership and operation of its motor vehicle, which caused Mr. Morgan to suffer severe personal injuries,” Morgan alleged in his complaint. Morgan claimed that he suffered severe injuries, including “multiple fractures which required multiple surgeries, extensive medical treatment and will require significant physical rehabilitation.”
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Wal-Mart declined to respond to the allegations concerning Roper, citing National Transportation Safety Board regulations limiting the dissemination of certain information relating to a traffic accident.
“Accordingly, absent entry of a Protective Order and adequate protections by the Court to maintain the confidential nature of Wal-Mart’s responses as required by the NTSB on-going investigation, Wal-Mart is unable to admit or deny [plaintiffs’ allegations],” Wal-Mart said in its response. The company is being represented by Jeffrey L. O’Hara of LeClairRyan.
