Though the amount was substantially less than pursued, attorneys representing the family of Esther Nakajjigo celebrated the judgement . Nakajjigo donated her own college fund to start a hospital, Berndt said; she raised money for charities and never took a salary. Ludovic Michaud and his new wife, Esther Nakajjigo, were driving around Arches National Park on a windy spring day in 2020 when a metal gate whipped around, sliced through the passenger door of. Ugandan activist's family awarded $10.5M for Utah park death The familys lawsuit claims when the national parks reopened in April 2020 after being shuttered due to Covid-19, rangers at the national park in Utah didnt 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 man files suit after wife's death at National Park - KMGH Family of newlywed woman 'DECAPITATED by metal gate' at Utah national The same year, Nakajjigo was named Ugandas ambassador for women and girls. One series reportedly had a weekly audience of 6.3 million viewers. Nationwide News Pty Ltd 2023. The large monetary damages being sought on behalf of Michaud and Nakajjigos parents are a reflection of the suffering they have gone through plus the loss of Nakajjigos future income and fundraising abilities, Chang said. All this building towards the $140million in damages. There have been gate accidents across the country, including another one on federal government property in 1980 in which a camper in California was impaled by a U.S. Forest Service road closure gate. The United States will pay more than $10 million in damages over the death of Esther Nakajjigo, a prominent Ugandan human rights activist killed in Arches National Park in 2020. Judge Bruce Jenkins said he wants to "examine with care" all the information presented during the weeklong trial. FOX 13 Investigates: Family sues over death of woman killed in Arches In the opening statements of the wrongful death lawsuit, attorneys representing Michaud and Nakajjigos family recounted the moment Michaud realised his wife had been killed. It feels lonely, and thats hard. Posted at 10:15 PM, Nov 12, 2020 Esther Nakajjigo was a prominent Ugandan human rights activist who was killed in Utah's Arches National Park in 2020. Matthew McConaugheys wife was among the passengers on board a Lufthansa flight struck by severe turbulence and has described the chaos. Woman decapitated by metal gate in front of her horrified husband in Nakajigos family and Michaud are suing the U.S. government for negligence as well as negligent infliction of emotional distress on the part of Michaud, who had to witness the grisly scene. Ms Nakajjigos husband said his wifes death was the worst thing I hope I will ever see. Nakajjigo's family sued the government for the largest federal award ever asked for in both state and national history, according to plaintiffs' attorney Randi McGinn, seeking $140 million in damages. Family of woman decapitated in Utah national park by swinging gate to Mr Michaud and Ms Nakajjigos family have filed a lawsuit in a US court accusing the National Park Service of negligence, Fox 13 reports. Vous pouvez modifier vos choix tout moment en cliquant sur le lien Tableau de bord sur la vie prive prsent sur nos sites et dans nos applications. By subscribing, you acknowledge and agree to KSL.com's. In their legal complaint, Michaud and Nakajjigos parents said the National Park Service was negligent for not maintaining the gate. Arches National Park is a 120-square-mile desert landscape near Moab, Utah, that is visited by more than 1.5 million people annually. "The National Park Service has, in fact, known for decades that an unsecured metal pipe gate creates an undetectable hazard and dangerous condition," the claim states, as reported by CBS Denver.. $270 MILLION LAWSUIT Ludovic Michaud, the husband of late human rights activist Esther Nakajjigo, has filed a $270 million wrongful death administrative claim against the National Park Service, according to a. sltrib.com 1996-2023 The Salt Lake Tribune. Disputing the family's claims the victim was on track to become the CEO of a non-profit who could eventually have netted an annual income in the hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars. In 2020, Ludovic Michaud was driving with his 25-year-old wife Esther Nakajjigo out of Utah's Arches National Park to get ice cream on June 13 when a metal gate swung into the car and cut her. Esther Nakajjigo was driving with her newlywed husband on their honeymoon in Arches when an open road gate was swung by strong winds into their rental car. In opening statements Monday in Salt Lake City, their attorneys said they were seeking $140 million (115m) in damages from the government accounting for Esther's earning potential. Family of Ugandan philanthropist decapitated by traffic gate in Arches This photo was taken in the hours before a gate swung into the couple's car, killing Nakajjigo. 'Shadow pandemic': Women, girls bear unequal share of Covid-19 burden, U.N. official warns, National parks begin to reopen across the country. NBC wrote that Nakajjigo had come to the United States to further her education, participating in programs at Drexel University in Philadelphia as a Mandela Washington Fellow and at the Watson Institute in Boulder, Colo., where she was the recipient of a Luff Peace Fellowship., Michaud, originally of France, was uninjured in the accident, but, according to NBCs report, has since been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder., Donate to the newsroom now. Family of Newlywed and Activist Decapitated at Utah's Arches National It alleges that if park employees had properly installed the gate to not swing into oncoming traffic or placed an $8 padlock on the gate to secure it from moving in the breeze, the world would not have lost a young woman influencer destined to become our societys future Princess Diana, Philanthropist Melinda Gates, or Oprah Winfrey.. The end of that trial came Monday, but a verdict is still pending. Ugandan activist's family awarded $10.5M for Utah park death Newlywed woman decapitated by car park entrance gate blown open in high Esther Nakajjigo was killed at Arches National Park in 2020. I really wanted to show her Arches, he told Fox 13. SALT LAKE CITY The family of human rights activist Esther Nakajjigo, who was decapitated in an accident in Arches National Park, has sued the National Park Service. "For want of an $8 basic padlock, our world lost an extraordinary warrior for good," the claim continues. Esther Nakajjigo's horrified husband was driving when a metal gate was whipped round in the wind and cut into the car where she was sitting and beheading her in Arches National Park in Utah, US. Join Outside+ to get Outside magazine, access to exclusive content, 1,000s of training plans, and more. Esther Nakajjigo, a 25-year-old Ugandan activist who'd moved to Colorado in 2019 to attend the Watson Institute in Boulder, died June 13, 2020, while visiting the park with her husband of two He has since been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and has struggled with flashbacks. Michaud was not injured in the accident, but he was covered head-to-toe in his wifes blood. The 25-year-old human rights activist and newlywed wife was killed on June 13, 2020, in Arches National Park. Michaud's wife, Esther Nakajjigo, 25, was a celebrated human rights activist in her home country of Uganda. Additionally, Berndt said the plaintiffs can only speculate on what Nakajjigo might have done had she lived, and the court can't ignore that "in favor of dreams and potential.". Get informative articles and interesting stories delivered to your inbox weekly. During the trials opening statements in December, Nakajjigo was described as a pearl beyond price with limitless potential, the Salt Lake Tribune reported. Activist, 25, hailed as 'future Oprah or Princess Diana' is None. This means that we may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. A federal judge ruled Monday that the U.S. will shell out more than $10 million in damages to the family of Esther Nakajjigo after she was killed in an accident at a Utah national park in. mesurer votre utilisation de nos sites et applications. Seven people have been rushed to hospital after severe turbulence on a flight led to an emergency landing. Family of Woman Decapitated by Swinging Gate at State Park Awarded $10. What if he hadn't suggested the trip to Arches? But an attorney for her parents and husband said they were grateful for the judgment, which represents the largest federal wrongful death verdict in Utah history, the Associated Press reported. Opening arguments began Monday in Salt Lake City in a wrongful death lawsuit brought by the family of a 25-year-old women's rights activist from Uganda who was killed by a wind-blown gate during a camping trip to Arches National Park in June 2020. The gate reportedly smashed through the side of the car and struck Nakajjigo . Nothing we can say makes up for your loss. But now, Michaud said, he returns to an apartment that doesn't feel like a home. She was also awarded a full scholarship from the king of Buganda. Attorneys representing the U.S. commended her work, yet noted her most recent job was working at a restaurant making $15 per hour. I know all the parks around Moab Its one of my favourite places in the US, if not my favourite place.. He spoke, too, about the difficulty of sending his wife's body to Uganda in a cardboard box; how only her hands, one of them broken, were visible at her funeral; and how he moved to a new apartment after the accident, unable to bear the reminders of the life he'd shared with Nakajjigo. The couple was leaving a park parking lot to get ice cream when a metal traffic control gate swung into the road, piercing the passenger side of the couples rental car and severing Nakajjigos head. 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 the US National Parks Service seeking . Attorney Randi McGinn, representing Nakajjigos family, on Monday asked the family to leave when he described the death in gruesome detail. Ms McGinn described Nakajjigo as a prominent womens rights activist who rose from poverty to become the host of a solutions-oriented reality television series in Uganda focused on empowering women around issues such as education and healthcare. Donate to the newsroom now. Nakajjigo worked on fundraising to open a hospital in an underserved part of Kampala, Ugandas capital, became a philanthropic celebrity and immigrated to the United States for a fellowship at the Boulder, Colorado-based Watson Institute for emerging leaders. A cruise employee has had his contract terminated after he was allegedly seen filming women from a female bathroom. November 12, 2020 / 2:34 PM Instead of planning their future together, Michaud is now processing the trauma and grief of Nakajjigos gruesome death and hoping the lawsuit his attorney plans to file will save other families from experiencing what he did. The United States will pay more than $10 million in damages over the death of Esther Nakajjigo, a prominent . Nakajjigo also created a reality television show in Uganda focused on helping teenage mothers stay in school and learn life skills. She added that the plaintiffs' assumption that Nakajjigo would have taken a salary "far in excess" of most nonprofit CEOs is "simply contrary to everything the court has heard about her," Berndt said. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. The trial gave me and Essies family members an opportunity to tell Essies beautiful story, and it was so important to me to have the chance to stand up and speak for this amazing woman.. By his verdict, Judge Bruce Jenkins has shown the world how the American justice system works to hold its own government accountable and greatly values all lives, including that of Esther Nakajjigo, a remarkable young woman from Uganda, Randi McGinn, the familys attorney said in a statement. In court, Michaud described his relationship with Nakajjigo as the best time of his life., It feels lonely, and thats hard. The United States will pay family members of a Ugandan human rights activist killed in an accident at Arches National Park more than $10 million in damages, a federal judge ruled Monday. The federal trial began Monday in Utah, where the husband and family of Nakajjigo are seeking $140 million in damages from the U.S. government, arguing in a complaint that the national park was negligent and failed to properly maintain the gate. Even simple tasks like cooking rice stored in a jar that Nakajjigo bought before her death feel paralyzing, he said. Michaud was the last plaintiff witness in the civil trial over the June 13, 2020, death of his wife, Esther Nakajjigo. In pink tops and white pants, women celebrate free period products becoming available in Utahs state buildings, Proposal to boost Utah bar licenses gets smaller with another round of cuts by lawmakers, Moab, Park City cry foul as Utah lawmakers target rules for vacation homes. Throughout the trial, attorneys debated estimates of Nakajjigos earnings potential. Ludovic Michaud and his new wife, Esther Nakajjigo, were driving around Arches National Park on a windy spring day in 2020 when a metal gate whipped around, sliced through the passenger door of. The gruesome nature of Nakajjigos death and the fact that she was a renowned Ugandan womens rights activist drew widespread attention to the case. Instead, the Utah park became the site of a horrific accident that killed her. The trial began in December and in court, per the AP, family attorney Randi McGinn reportedly argued Nakajjigo could have eventually brought in hundreds of thousands, if not millions, annually had she survived. Trial begins Ugandan woman's death in Arches National Park | 9news.com The ruling was. They had wanted three children. Outside's long reads email newsletter features our strongest writing, most ambitious reporting, and award-winning storytelling about the outdoors. They said you have to lock it or its going to impale a car, so everyone knows, Chang said. At age 17, Nakajjigo. The 25-year-old human rights activist and newlywed wife.

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