McCLELLAN v. JOHN PENNIE and YESCO

Grandmother Dies from Car Accident Injuries. Husband Pursues Wrongful Death Claim

Court:
Confidential settlement reached.

Plaintiff's Counsel:
Chalat & Koupal PC

Facts
On the clear and sunny afternoon of December 28, 2000, Mrs. Sandra McClellan was driving her 1992 Jeep Cherokee northbound on Colorado 287 in Boulder County, Colorado. At approximately the same time, Mr. John Pennie was driving a 1999 Ford F-550 utility truck southbound on Colorado 287. Mr. Pennie was driving the utility truck as part of his duties as an employee of Young Electric Sign Company (YESCO.)

Mr. Pennie attempted to make a left hand turn onto eastbound Colorado 52 directly into the path of travel of Mrs. McClellan, without yielding the right of way to Mrs. McClellan, and collided into Mrs. McClellan’s vehicle. Mrs. McClellan was trapped inside her vehicle after the impact. Paramedics responded to the scene, extracted her from the vehicle, and had her airlifted to a local trauma hospital.

Mrs. McClellan essentially experienced a crushing of her left side which resulted in coma followed by repeated surgeries and blindness in one eye. She ultimately died of her injuries on February 19, 2001. Mrs. McClellan was 60, a mother and grandmother, and an employee of 14 years at Call Connect where she worked as a physician-referral counselor.

Howard McClellan, her husband of 25 years, pursued a wrongful death claim against Mr. Pennie and YESCO. The actual damages in the case were about $1.2M. The claim was settled for a confidential amount in May of 2001.