Dump truck driver argues immunity in wrongful death case involving Moniteau County crash
Ryan Shiner
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
Court filings from Thursday show a Moniteau County dump truck driver is arguing he should be given immunity in a wrongful death case involving a crash.
The parents of Deborah Kay Coville filed a wrongful death lawsuit against John Kendrick and Moniteau County on Aug. 29 after Coville died from injuries she suffered in a crash on Aug. 5.
The petition alleges that Kendrick did not stop at a stop sign or yield to Coville’s Chevy Lumina as she drove eastbound on Lookout Trail. A Missouri State Highway Patrol crash report says the driver of the dump truck failed to yield to the Chevrolet.
Both drivers wore seatbelts in the crash, the report says. Coville was flown to University Hospital with serious injuries that day and later died on Aug. 12, the petition says.
A hearing in the case is scheduled for 9 a.m. Friday after Coville’s parents – Bobby and Suzanne Muprhy – filed for a change of venue on Oct. 3.
A filing from Thursday argues that Kendrick should be dismissed from the case because he is a public employee and is entitled to protection for “discretionary” acts. The petition accuses Kendrick of negligence, which Kendrick’s attorney alleges is a claim included within official immunity protections for public employees.