Posted on 05/25/2018 9:43:26 AM PDT by ChicagoConservative27
A Georgia rape victim was awarded $1 billion in what’s believed to be the largest jury verdict ever handed down in an American assault case, according to reports Friday.
“It’s one of the biggest victories for women in the United States,” Chris Stewart, a lawyer for victim Hope Cheston, said at a press conference.
“They said a little black girl in Clayton County who was raped is worth $1 billion. That was a big win for us,” he said, according to the local station 11alive.com.
Cheston was 14 years old and visiting a friend October 2012 when she was attacked by apartment security guard Brandon Lamar Zachary in an Atlanta suburb, according to court documents cited by the station.
A civil jury ruled Tuesday that the security company that hired the guard, Crime Prevention Agency, must fork over the massive payout because it failed to properly monitor their violent worker, who had a history of bad behavior, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
“Sexual assault is sexual assault. It’s not right, and it needs to be punished,” Cheston, 20, said after the verdict, according to USA Today.
It’s “life-changing” to know the jury understands her pain, she said.
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
The wise jury wanted a zillion dollars, but after 2 weeks of deliberation finally settled on a billion.
That is: Funny, no mention of the perp in the article.
LOL, They could have awarded 10K, and there would still be no recovery if there are no defendant assets to cover it. Where is the deep pocket? (The Tax payers?) There has to be a reason why this was news, it goes deeper than just an assault against a minor. (Setting a verdict precedent?)
I think eleventy quintillion is the rightful jury award. Anything less is racist and misogynist.
Do I get a gold star?
So stupid...
Just put a bullet in the guard and be done with it.
She originally filed the civil suit against the apartment complex, the property management company, ....and the security company.... So her parents were initially expecting a BIG WIN as she was only 14 at the time so she had no grasp of the situation legally much. The rapist got 20 yrs.
With her parents....
“It’s one of the biggest victories for women a woman in the United States,”
She was 14 yrs old at the time ..I hat it when they refer to these gals as “little children”...a 14 yr. old is NOT a little child.
Of course
What in the name of all that is Holy does that have to do with this thread?
The amount of the award makes a mockery out of the tort system.
Being absurd is a win?
The security firm is not worth $1bn so the judge may reduce the award ....so any final settlement figure is unclear.
How silly.Assuming that there’s strong evidence to support a claim of rape (an assumption I’m willing to make at this moment) then I’d have to see pretty firm evidence to support a claim that the company should have known that it would happen.And even if *that* evidence existed a billion dollars is just ludicrous for *anyone*....even my grand daughters.
Good.
The rape.....In 2012, Ms Cheston was at a friend’s birthday party in Jonesboro, Georgia, with her boyfriend when the armed guard approached her, told her boyfriend not to move, and raped her on a picnic table.
The company isn’t worth that so that figure will be changed. Unsure why so high as there were not any outstanding circumstances in this unless it’s because the guard wasn’t licensed to work though had been hired by the company anyway.
No question it happened.....he was a guard at a security co. who pulled a gun on her boyfriend then raped her on a picnic table.
But there’s some kind of shannigans going on in this court room besides this.....after the verdict ‘the jurors’ didn’t wait but ran up and hugged the girl and her family rather than wait for the judge to excuse them.
About 10-15 years ago there was a huge fire at a nightclub in Rhode Island which killed about 100 people...mainly kids.
As time went on it became clear that the band that was playing (and whose pyrotechnics started the fire) didn't have any money or insurance.It also became clear that the owners of the club didn't either.
So a story appeared on the local news that one of the lawyers involved was planning to sue Shell Oil (yup,the multi billion dollar behemoth) because they were one of the sponsors of the band's tour.
All lawyers care about is the paycheck...they don't give a rat's hindquarters about real justice.
You’d wonder then what Weinsteins going to have to pay if found guilty!
I don’t think the jury had any idea of what a billion is. Just a big amount of money.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.