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To: longtermmemmory
They can still file a civil suit. The bigger hurdle they have to face is that they need to demonstrate some kind of loss that can be measured in dollars and cents. The most obvious financial loss in the case of a person who dies before the age of 20 is a loss of income over the course of a lifetime, but the family would have a hard time demonstrating that this Brown dude would have earned even so much as a nickel in an honest job. There might also be a limitation on how much can be collected by the family on these terms at all, since Brown was not a minor and appears to have no dependents.

The loss of affection is the next obvious one in cases like this, and the damages there can be substantial. But there would also be a discovery process and a lot of legal wrangling over just how much "affection" was involved here ... and the defense would have an army of experts ready to demonstrate that Brown's family really didn't give a sh!t about him at all.

In other words, the only leverage the Brown family has over any other parties in this case is the likelihood of a long, expensive trial.

41 posted on 11/26/2014 4:21:04 PM PST by Alberta's Child ("The ship be sinking.")
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To: Alberta's Child

“...The loss of affection is the next obvious one in cases like this, and the damages there can be substantial. But there would also be a discovery process and a lot of legal wrangling over just how much “affection” was involved here ... and the defense would have an army of experts ready to demonstrate that Brown’s family really didn’t give a sh!t about him at all....”
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It is pretty clear that, prior to his death, his family (at least his mother, father and step-father) didn’t give a crap about him -— he lived with his grandmother, not that most people would know that since it had absolutely minimal coverage by the media.


42 posted on 11/26/2014 4:32:12 PM PST by House Atreides
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To: Alberta's Child
-- They can still file a civil suit. --

Very high hurdle when the claim is against the government. See qualified immunity.

48 posted on 11/26/2014 6:04:20 PM PST by Cboldt
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