The family of two Bayonne brothers who drowned in the Lincoln Community School on June 9th, 2022 will not accept an offer from the board of education to settle for $14 million, their attorney exclusively told HCV today.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
“Please take notice that pursuant to Rule 4:58, Defendants the Bayonne Board of Education, Cory Kettleman, Alexander Mariak, Lisa Kohler, Nicole Layo, Michael Pierson, John Rickard, and Ashley Danback hereby offer to allow judgment to be entered against Defendants on all claims and potential claims in this action in the global amount of seven million dollars collectively, inclusive of all costs and attorneys’ fees,” Roshan Shah filed in a joint offer to take judgement for Chu Ming Zheng on September 5th.
“The total judgment amount which Defendants shall be obligated to pay, including recoverable costs, attorneys’ fees, and all elements of recovery on the claims and potential claims for relief made by all plaintiffs, the Estate of Chu Ming Zheng, Qing Zheng, and Mei Jiang as both administrators of the estate and individually, shall not exceed seven million dollars. Nothing herein shall be construed as an admission of liability on the part of the Defendants.”
An identical joint offer was filed for Jack Jiang on the same day, bringing the total settlement amount to $14 million.
The estate for the two former Bayonne High School students filed a $100 million tort claim in June 2022, about two weeks after the double fatal incident occurred, and a lawsuit was filed in Hudson County Superior Court shortly thereafter.
Depositions in the case that came to light this summer allege concealing evidence, violating lifeguard protocols, and lying to police, as only HCV reported.
Daryl Zaslow, the attorney representing the estate of the two boys, said he will be rejecting the settlement offers on his clients’ behalf as he is expecting the court to rule that they are entitled to punitive damages.
“My clients will absolutely not accept these offers as they do not represent fair or full compensation for the inestimable, horrific and totally preventable damages caused by the gross negligence and recklessness of the BBOE and the management of the Lincoln School Pool that resulted in both boys drowning and the destruction of an entire family,” he stated.
” … As per this issue, the conduct of the Defendants went well beyond mere negligence, as they acted with a reckless disregard for the lives of Chu Ming and Jack, and for the safety of all the patrons of the Lincoln School Pool, and then several Defendants patently lied to the police and detective who were conducting their investigation how these boys both drowned. As such, Plaintiffs will almost certainly be entitled to an award of punitive damages …”
He added that New Jersey law allows for the award of punitive damages “to punish egregious misconduct” in order to prevent similar actions or behavior going forward.
Bayonne school officials did not return inquiries seeking comment, though the district typically does not comment on pending litigation.
My goodness! Surely they cannot think that the life expectancy earnings and all the grief and suffering caused is worth so little!
The money does not save you. Dianne. There is only one thing that can save you, only one thing.