A jury in Franklin County, Missouri has awarded $89 million to the family of a man killed in a 2008 crash on February 2, 2008. The jury reached the award after a one-day trial in Franklin County Circuit Court. According to the suit, Troy Zerna, 20, already had one DWI when he crashed his vehicle head-on with Dennis Riegel Jr., 28, of Washington. Riegel's fiancée, Christine Hodge, who was 13 weeks pregnant, was seriously injured. The couple were driving home from registering for wedding gifts at a shopping mall when the head-on collision occurred.
According to the St. Louis Today, the jury's award included $53.5 million to Christine Hodge and $35.5 million to the couple's daughter and Riegel's parents. Zerna has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for this drunk driving accident in his previous involvement in a driving-while-intoxicated accident five months earlier in September 2007.
If you or a member of your family have been involved in a drunk driving crash, contact the Los Angeles personal injury attorneys at Estey & Bomberger, LLP for a free consultation.
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