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After nine years of litigation, a jury in Jefferson County has awarded a $4 million verdict against the City of Homewood and the Homewood Police Department. The City of Homewood plans to appeal this decision, according to Homewood's trial counsel Terry A. Sides of Hale Sides, LLC.
“The City of Homewood has the utmost respect for both the jury system and the service which the jury gave in this particular case,” said Sides in an email to The Homewood Star. “This was an unfortunate accident, but we strongly disagree with the jury’s decision and will be appealing it to the Supreme Court of Alabama.”
The $4 million verdict came from a case regarding a personal injury lawsuit from Homewood resident Eldetraud “Trudy” Roy after she was struck by a motorcycle driven by Homewood police officer Jerry Wayne Suttles.
On May 19, 2006, Roy was walking on Central Avenue during the Torch Run fundraising event, according to documents from the Supreme Court of Alabama. Roy was given permission to cross the intersection, said attorney Allen Lasseter of Shuttlesworth Lasseter, LLC, when she was hit by a motorcycle Suttles was driving.
Roy suffered injuries from the accident and sought damages from the city of Homewood and Suttles. Suttles’ role as a police officer, however, granted him immunity from being sued as an individual and meant there was a $100,000 cap placed on the amount of damages Roy could recover.
Lasseter said the litigation in the eight years leading up to last week’s trial involved arguing for the ability to sue Suttles as an individual.
“Normally, any government employee including police if you sue them, they can only be liable up to $100,000,” Lasseter said. “But if you sue an officer or any government employee for doing things they don’t have the authority to do … then the cap doesn’t apply. That was what the whole appellate fight was about.”
Suttles was in violation of the law, Lasseter said, because he was traveling over the speed limit during an event which was not a police emergency.
The jury recommended the $4 million settlement on May 21, including $2 million in compensatory damages and $2 million in punitive damages, which the City of Homewood will appeal to the Supreme Court of Alabama.
