Facts

In January 2005, Maureen Martinez was caught in a deluge that pushed her vehicle into a creek and swallowed it. Martinez was holding on to a fence when the 8-foot waters forced her to move down the creek to her death. Martinez was pregnant when she died.

Plaintiff Daniel Martinez filed a lawsuit against numerous defendants, including the county of San Bernardino, various upstream developers, the city of San Bernardino and the city of Highland for the deaths of his wife and fetus, alleging defendant reopened a previously closed bridge over the creek, which was then quickly covered by rising waters during the heavy rain. Defendant denied the claims.

Damages

Plaintiff claimed unspecified general damages for wrongful death, dangerous condition of public property, and negligence by all parties including a home developer that had modified the surrounding land.

Result

The parties settled for $775,000.

Other Information

This lawsuit resolved with a contribution by and on behalf of five different defendants. The case presented issues dealing with government immunities related to weather circumstances, as well as comparative fault on the part of the decedent. The plaintiff argued that Upstream landowners created a diversion of the water flow so as to increase the volume of water near the area where the incident occurred. There were also allegations against the county of San Bernardino for flood control problems, which were caused upstream. Finally, the Old and Grand Prix Fires which occurred several years before the incident involving Maureen Martinez created a water shed and debris problem which largely contributed to the flash flood. Raymond T. Gail, a retired attorney affiliated with Inland Valley Arbitration and Mediation Services achieved this settlement through multiple mediation sessions.