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United States attorneys do not dispute that park officials shouldered blame, but argued the amount the family should be awarded is far less and called into questions the ways in which the damages being sought were calculated. There was less than a second between when the gate started to move and when it struck the car and killed Nakajjigo, according to the report. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, All Access Digital offer for just 99 cents! Arches National Park is best known for its pristine sandstone arches and its massive red Delicate Arch, which has featured in countless Instagram photos.. On October 22, Michaud filed a wrongful death claim against According to the claim, 25-year-old Esther Nakajjigo was decapitated while sitting in the passenger seat of a car that was exiting Arches National Park. They married about three months prior. Nakajjigo, adds CBS, had grown up in poverty. The National parks Service didn't respond to a request for comment on the claim from The Sun. In opening statements Monday in Salt Lake City, attorneys representing Michaud and Nakajjigo's family said they were seeking $140 million in damages from the government. Chang said she plans to file a formal lawsuit if the claim is rejected. This photo was taken in the hours before a gate swung into the couple's car, killing Nakajjigo. Park staff told investigators that the gates own weight usually kept it in place, according to a report from the Grand County sheriffs office. The tragic accident is now the subject of a wrongful death lawsuit Michaud and Nakajjigo's family are pursuing, in which they argue that the U.S. Park Service was negligent and did not maintain the gates at the entrances and exits to the parks, leading to Nakajjigo's death. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated. Newlyweds Esther Essie Nakajjigo, 25, and Ludovic Ludo Newlyweds Esther Essie Nakajjigo, 25, and Ludovic Ludo Michaud, 27, were driving out of the park during a camping trip on June 13 when strong winds blew the metal gate into the side of their car and penetrated it like a hot knife through butter, according to the administrative claim, which was filed in October. The (CCA-BY-2.0). Esther Nakajjigo, a 25-year-old Ugandan human rights activist, was killed in a horrific accident at Arches National Park on June 13, 2020. McGinn said if her life hadn't been cut short that Nakajjigo's trajectory suggested she would have gone on to become a non-profit CEO who could eventually have netted an annual income in the hundreds of thousands of dollars or millions. More by The Associated Press, Got a story tip? Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Provided by The National Park Service did not respond to an email seeking comment, and the media relations voicemail inbox was full and could not accept messages. WebThe family of Ugandan philanthropist Esther Nakajjigo, who was decapitated by a traffic gate in front of her husband in Arches National Park in Utah, has been awarded $10.5m. A lot of people just want to continue that because thats what she would have wanted from us.. Shelly Bradbury is a breaking news reporter who joined The Denver Post in November 2019. If your child will play baseball or softball this spring, youll need to stock up on appropriate clothing and equipment. "Despite this fact, the NPS has done nothing to ensure the safety of its visitors and guests.". 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. 2023 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. She and Michaud were married in March, and the two traveled to Arches to celebrate the one-year anniversary of when they first met on a dating app. "She's got quite a few projects started, and we need to make sure those projects survive after A lot of people just want to continue that because that's what she would have wanted from us.". The claim says the gate was left open and unrestrained, causing major damage to the hood and the front passenger fender, door and window. The show had an audience of 6.3 million every week. Lindsay Clancy's murder of 3 kids shows cruel trick psychosis plays, Train derailment in Springfield, Ohio as residents ordered to shelter in place, Rape survivor 'sobbed seeing Gabby Petito bodycam vid after same cop did nothing', Mom 'stabs 3 of her kids to death and wounds 2 others in unsupervised visit', 2020 THE SUN, US, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED | TERMS OF USE | PRIVACY | YOUR AD CHOICES | SITEMAP, A 25-year-old activist was beheaded in a freak accident while enjoying a trip to Arches National Park in Utah, Esther Nakajjigo died on June 13 after a metal gate swung into a car she and her husband were in and sliced het head off. A 30-year-old man who also fell was hospitalized; his current condition is unknown. Her family is filing a $270 million wrongful death claim against the park, saying her death was preventable. Email: newsroom@coloradosun.com Nakajjigo was offered a full scholarship to the Watson Institute in Boulder, Colorado, and started a social entrepreneurship program in early 2019. This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. "The end of the gate impaled the car like a lance, and literally beheaded his newly-wed bride right in front of him.". Michauds attorneys also said the federal government was aware of the dangers, citing a 1980 accident in which a man was impaled by an unsecured gate as he rode in the back of a pickup in Californias Stanislaus National Forest. In Pittsburgh, she helped the newspaper earn the 2019 Pulitzer Prize for breaking news after a mass shooting at a local synagogue. 7 CHILDREN INJURED IN NEW YORK BUS CRASH THAT DAMAGED HOME, The family's lawsuit claims when the national parks reopened in April 2020 after being shuttered due to COVID-19, rangers at the national park in Utah didn't secure the gate in place, which in effect "turned a metal pipe into a spear that went straight through the side of a car, decapitating and killing Esther Nakajjigo.". DENVER (CBS4) - The family of a woman killed while visiting Arches National Park is hoping they can change the dangerous conditions that lead to her death and continue the philanthropy she inspired around the globe. The claim also argues that NPS regularly uses gates constructed "out of metal pipes with spear-like sharp ends," and that Arches National Park had "a set of these metal pipe gates with lance-like sharp ends at the entrance/exit of the park. 2 min read June 17, 2021 - 6:27AM Esther Chief Ranger Scott Brown said a 65-year-old man and 60-year-old woman died after falling It's likely the first step in a lengthy federal lawsuit. Michaud and his wife, Esther Nakajjigo, were in Arches National Park. Nakajjigo was offered a full scholarship to the Watson Institute in Boulder, Colorado, and started a social entrepreneurship program in early 2019. Fox News Flash top headlines for December 6. She's been a reporter since 2012, focused on criminal justice, breaking news and enterprise. WebEsther Essie Nakajjigo was 25 years old when an unsecured gate inside Arches National Park swung open and impaled the vehicle she was a passenger in, killing her. "We dont know with any level of certainty what her plans were," Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Nelson said. RELATED: Denver Woman Decapitated By Gate: Family Files $270M Wrongful Death Claim Against Arches National Park. WebHikers walk beside the Delicate Arch at sunset in the Arches National Park near Moab, Utah on April 21, 2018. Deborah Chang, the Los Angeles-based attorney representing Michaud, claimed there was nothing he could do to swerve out of the way of the gate that killed his wife and missed him by a hair. WebThe photo in this video of the arch is Corona Arch and I dont its in Archs national park. ", "Such metal pipe gates have been known to move when left unsecured, swing to the traveled part of the roadways, and penetrate into vehicles," the claim argues. Michauds attorneys also said the federal government was aware of the dangers, citing a 1980 accident in which a man was impaled by an unsecured gate as he rode in the back of a pickup in Californias Stanislaus National Forest. WebUSA TODAY 0:00 0:49 Two people died Friday while hiking in Arches National Park in Utah. She described Nakajjigo as a prominent women's rights activist who rose from poverty to become the host of a solutions-oriented reality television series in Uganda focused on empowering women on issues such as education and healthcare. Ryan Farrick is a freelance writer and small business advertising consultant based out of mid-Michigan. Shes got quite a few projects started, and we need to make sure those projects survive after her. I'm still struggling with that," Michaud said. WebDENVER -- Ludovic Michaud has notified the Department of the Interior and the National Park Service that he intends to file a wrongful death lawsuit because of a crash at the entrance Nakajjigo, originally from Kampala, Uganda, used her university tuition money to start a nonprofit organization that provided free reproductive health care to girls and young women when she was just 17. While the Nakajjigo family had initially sought more in compensatory damages, their attorneys celebrated the judgment, saying that it isby farthe largest federal wrongful death verdict in Utah history. FILE - Delicate Arch is seen at Arches National Park on April 25, 2021, near Moab, Utah. She received numerous other humanitarian awards and created a popular reality television series aimed at empowering young mothers. WebThe family of a young woman who was killed by a swinging gate at Arches National Park has sued the park service over her death. WebThey said claims by the family's lawyers that Nakajjigo, who was 25 at the time of her death, was on track to be a nonprofit CEO shortly were too speculative to be used as a basis for Telling stories that matter in a dynamic, evolving state. The National Park Service has, in fact, known for decades that an unsecured metal pipe gate creates an undetectable hazard and dangerous condition for its park invitees, the claim reads, noting three other instances since 1988 in which people in cars were killed by such gates. The most famous arch is the Delicate Arch which Is in Archs National Park. Family photo. Nakajjigo gained national attention in Uganda and created a reality TV show that helped child mothers stay in school and develop life skills, according to the claim. WebDenver newlyweds trip to Arches National Park ends with wifes death Family awarded $10.5 million for newlywed decapitated by metal gate at Arches National Park in Utah Join the conversation! They headed to Arches National Park as soon as the park reopened in June from its coronavirus shutdown. Web6 Esther Nakajjigo was a Ugandan human rights activist and newlywed wife when the 25-year-old was killed at Arches National Park in 2020, decapitated by an unsecured gate that is Two peopledied Friday while hikinginArches National Park in Utah. "I don't know how I could stand to see another thing like that happen, and I just want to make sure we do whatever we can to avoid, to save another life. Attorney Deborah Chang, who filed the claim on behalf of Michaud, as well as Nakajjigos parents, wrote that the National Park Service has for years used entrance and exit gates made of metal poles with spear-like sharp ends, and they were known to swing into roadways when left unsecured. We take pride in exposing the hypocrisy of corporations, other organizations, and individuals whose actions put innocent people in harms way. The newlyweds were driving during a camping trip on June 13, when a strong gust of wind blew an unsecured metal gate that sliced through the side of their car and decapitated Nakajjigo. The family of a young woman who was killed by a swinging gate at Arches National Park has sued the park service over her death. One of the Denver couple's stops was Arches National Park near Moab. Legal Statement. As they entered, high winds blew the park entrance gate a swinging pole back across the highway. The gate narrowly missed Michaud, who is originally from Paris but now lives in Denver. On the edge of the park, a metal gate normally secured with a lock was left untethered. November 13, 2020 / 7:49 AM Newlywed killed by swinging gate at Arches, Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window), Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window), Bay Area weather: After thunderstorms and hail, snow could be on the way this weekend, Newlywed killed by swinging gate at Arches National Park, 1 killed when business jet encounters severe turbulence, Bay Area honeymooners say snorkel boat abandoned them off Maui coast, At least 26 killed in fiery train crash in Greece, If it was your child, when would you give up? Mother searches for 5-year-old son swept away in January floods, Online fundraiser emerges for Brentwood father who died while kayaking.
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