Durham settles injury lawsuit

Woman hit by police cruiser accepts payment of $375,000

DURHAM -- It began in September 2000, when a speeding Durham police cruiser struck Linda Jones and sent her flying.

It ended May 2007 when the city finally surrendered in its legal fight and agreed to pay Jones $375,000. City attorney Henry Blinder announced the settlement Thursday at a City Council work session.

Though Jones, 45, still has to walk with a cane, her attorney said Thursday that she was glad to have the issue resolved.

"She's looking forward to getting on with her life," defense attorney Carlos Mahoney said of his client, who he said did not want to comment.

Mahoney wouldn't say how much of the $375,000 he would receive, but he did say that Medicaid, which paid for Jones' extensive medical treatments, received $70,000 of the settlement.

Durham spent five years contesting her claim that Officer Joseph Kelly was grossly negligent when he slammed into her. City attorneys convinced a series of judges in various state courts that the case shouldn't be sent to a jury.

The city argued that Kelly was acting responsibly and within his capacity as a police officer when he struck Jones. He had sirens blaring as he raced to the scene of a domestic disturbance after a second distress call.

He struck Jones as she crossed Liberty Street on foot, heading to her job at a bakery. The impact sent her flying six feet in the air and 76 feet down the street.

The city argued that Jones could have avoided the collision. They claimed in court that she was near the other side of the street when Kelly was driving toward her, but she was moving back to the middle of the road at impact.

The city's case suffered the ultimately fatal blow in December, when the state Supreme Court reversed itself and said Jones could take the case to a jury.

Blinder said Thursday the city decided it wasn't worth continuing to mount legal fees and risk losing the suit, which could have been much more expensive.

"We just felt [a settlement] was the most prudent use of city resources," Blinder said, adding that the city also felt "a certain sympathy for her situation."

Blinder said $117,752 of the settlement will be paid by the city. The remaining $257,248 will come from Durham's liability insurance provider. The city's legal fees, which Mahoney said he believed were more than $200,000, also were covered by insurance.