Senate Bill sb0030

    Florida Senate - 2004        (NP)                        SB 30

    By Senator Bullard





    39-11-04

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to Citrus County; providing for

  3         the relief of Bruce Michael McQuillin, as

  4         Personal Representative of the Estate of

  5         Deborah Ann McQuillin, deceased, and

  6         individually, as surviving husband of Deborah

  7         Ann McQuillin; providing for the relief of

  8         Michael McQuillin, surviving minor son of

  9         Deborah Ann McQuillin; providing for an

10         appropriation to compensate them for the death

11         of Deborah Ann McQuillin as a result of the

12         negligence of Citrus County; providing an

13         effective date.

14  

15         WHEREAS, on March 20, 1997, around midnight, Deborah

16  Ann McQuillin and two friends were riding in a 1989 Mustang on

17  Moccasin Slough Road, in a rural area east of Inverness in

18  Citrus County, and

19         WHEREAS, the vehicle ran off the pavement and, because

20  there was a 3-to-5-inch drop-off from the pavement to the

21  shoulder, when the driver attempted to bring the vehicle back

22  onto the pavement, the tires caught on the drop-off and the

23  car flipped several times, striking a tree in the process, and

24         WHEREAS, as a result of the accident, the other two

25  occupants of the car were thrown out of the car, suffering

26  serious injuries, and Deborah McQuillin was found dead in the

27  back seat, and

28         WHEREAS, there was a dispute over who had been driving,

29  but, based on the testimony of the survivors, the jury

30  determined that Mrs. McQuillin was the driver, and

31  

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    Florida Senate - 2004        (NP)                        SB 30
    39-11-04




 1         WHEREAS, evidence indicated that the vehicle may have

 2  been traveling at a speed considerably over the speed limit

 3  and that Mrs. McQuillin had a blood-alcohol level of 0.15, and

 4         WHEREAS, other evidence demonstrated that the drop-off

 5  in the roadway created a hazardous condition that violated

 6  various standards for the design, construction, and

 7  maintenance of streets and highways, including Citrus County's

 8  rules requiring the surface of the shoulder to be level with

 9  the pavement, and that the drop-off was the proximate cause of

10  the crash, and

11         WHEREAS, the jury entered a verdict in favor of the

12  plaintiff in the amount of $5.6 million, but apportioned 80

13  percent of the negligence and liability to Deborah McQuillin

14  and 20 percent to Citrus County, and

15         WHEREAS, as a result of the respective attribution of

16  comparative negligence to the plaintiff and the county, the

17  award was reduced to $1,125,892, including $880,000 for

18  Deborah McQuillin's minor son, Michael, who was 7 years old at

19  the time of the accident, and

20         WHEREAS, the district court of appeal disallowed

21  $10,080 of that sum, leaving a total of $235,812 due to Mr.

22  McQuillin, plus court costs totalling $13,761.31, and

23         WHEREAS, Citrus County has paid the statutory limit of

24  $200,000, including $100,000 on behalf of Bruce Michael

25  McQuillin and $100,000 on behalf of his minor son, Michael,

26  NOW, THEREFORE,

27  

28  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

29  

30         Section 1.  The facts stated in the preamble to this

31  act are found and declared to be true.

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    Florida Senate - 2004        (NP)                        SB 30
    39-11-04




 1         Section 2.  Citrus County is authorized and directed to

 2  appropriate from funds of the county not otherwise

 3  appropriated and to draw a warrant payable to Bruce Michael

 4  McQuillin, as Personal Representative of the Estate of Deborah

 5  Ann McQuillin, for the total amount of $149,573.31, the sum

 6  remaining from the $249.573.31 owed to Mr. McQuillin and

 7  apportioned as follows: the sum of $1,600 for the funeral

 8  expenses of Deborah McQuillin; $12,760 for the loss of Mrs.

 9  McQuillin's support and services by Bruce Michael McQuillin

10  from the date of the injury to the date of the final judgment;

11  $118,252 for the loss of the decedent's support and services

12  by Bruce Michael McQuillin in the future; $24,200 to Mr.

13  McQuillin for the loss of his wife's companionship and

14  protection and for pain and suffering in the past; $79,000 to

15  Mr. McQuillin for the loss of his wife's companionship and

16  protection and for pain and suffering in the future; and

17  $13,761.31 to be paid for court costs.

18         Section 3.  Citrus County is authorized and directed to

19  appropriate from funds of the county not otherwise

20  appropriated and to draw a warrant payable to Bruce Michael

21  McQuillin, parent and legal guardian of Michael McQuillin, in

22  the amount of $780,000, to be placed in a Special Needs Trust

23  created for the exclusive use and benefit of Michael

24  McQuillin, a minor, to compensate him for loss of parental

25  companionship, instruction, and guidance and for pain and

26  suffering. Upon the death of Michael McQuillin, the trust

27  balance shall revert to Citrus County.

28         Section 4.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a

29  law.

30  

31  

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