Florida Senate - 2015 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
Bill No. SB 36
Ì9061949Î906194
LEGISLATIVE ACTION
Senate . House
Comm: RCS .
03/11/2015 .
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The Committee on Judiciary (Diaz de la Portilla) recommended the
following:
1 Senate Amendment (with title amendment)
2
3 Delete lines 75 - 80
4 and insert:
5 and to draw a warrant payable to Lara Guerrero, as personal
6 representative of the Estate of Victor Guerrero in the amount of
7 $1,500,000.00, which shall be apportioned as follows: to the
8 Estate of Victor Guerrero in the amount of $90,000.00, to Lara
9 Guerrero in the amount of $405,000.00, to Kevin Guerrero in the
10 amount of $345,000.00, to Michael Guerrero in the amount of
11 $330,000.00, and to David Guerrero in the amount of $330,000.00,
12 as compensation for injuries and damages sustained as a result
13 of the death of Victor Guerrero.
14
15 ================= T I T L E A M E N D M E N T ================
16 And the title is amended as follows:
17 Delete lines 2 - 67
18 and insert:
19 An act for the relief of the Estate of Victor Guerrero
20 by Pasco County; providing for an appropriation to
21 compensate the Guerrero family for Officer Guerrero’s
22 death, which was the result of negligence by an
23 employee of Pasco County; providing that the
24 appropriation settles all present and future claims
25 relating to the death of Officer Guerrero; providing a
26 limitation on fees and costs; providing an effective
27 date.
28
29 WHEREAS, on May 1, 2008, Victor Guerrero, a veteran of the
30 United States Marine Corps and a decorated, 20-year veteran of
31 the City of Tampa Police Department, was riding his motorcycle
32 to visit his mother on his day off from work, and
33 WHEREAS, Officer Guerrero was traveling southbound on U.S.
34 41, about 1 mile north of S.R. 52, which is a straightaway with
35 no obstructions, and
36 WHEREAS, at the same time, Pasco County employee Daniel
37 Whipple was driving a Pasco County vehicle northbound on U.S.
38 41, and
39 WHEREAS, as Officer Guerrero approached Mr. Whipple, Mr.
40 Whipple made a left hand turn directly into the path of Officer
41 Guerrero, and
42 WHEREAS, an accident reconstruction expert estimated that
43 Officer Guerrero was about 100 feet away when Mr. Whipple, who
44 claimed that he never saw Officer Guerrero, made the turn, and
45 WHEREAS, Officer Guerrero had no time to brake or swerve
46 and struck the side of Mr. Whipple’s truck and was ejected from
47 the motorcycle, and
48 WHEREAS, Officer Guerrero was airlifted to St. Joseph’s
49 Hospital in Tampa, where he was pronounced dead, and
50 WHEREAS, the Pasco County Driver Safety Review Board
51 investigated the accident and determined that Mr. Whipple was at
52 fault, citing carelessness, and
53 WHEREAS, after the accident, Officer Guerrero’s widow, Lara
54 Guerrero, was unable to return to her job at Home Depot due to
55 severe emotional distress, and was prescribed anti-depressant
56 medication to assist her in dealing with her loss, and
57 WHEREAS, Officer Guerrero left behind three sons, Michael,
58 David, and Kevin, who were 21, 19, and 15, respectively, at the
59 time of the accident, and
60 WHEREAS, Lara Guerrero, as personal representative of the
61 Estate of Victor Guerrero, filed a law suit against Pasco County
62 in the Circuit Court of the Sixth Judicial Circuit in Pasco
63 County, and
64 WHEREAS, on February 10, 2012, the jury in the case
65 returned a verdict for $7,845,127.30 in favor of the Estate of
66 Victor Guerrero, which was reduced 10 percent for comparative
67 negligence for Officer Guerrero’s failure to wear a helmet,
68 leaving a total verdict of $7,060,614.57, plus interest at the
69 statutory rate of 4.75 percent per annum, and
70 WHEREAS, the amount awarded by the jury includes economic
71 damages of $1,095,127.30, which were stipulated to by the
72 parties and include damages for future loss of income and
73 funeral expenses, damages representing loss of support for Lara
74 Guerrero, and damages representing loss of support for Kevin
75 Guerrero, and
76 WHEREAS, the amount awarded by the jury also includes $1.5
77 million for Lara Guerrero for loss of her husband’s
78 companionship and protection and for her pain and suffering, and
79 $1.75 million for each of Officer Guerrero’s sons for loss of
80 parental companionship, instruction, and guidance and for their
81 pain and suffering, and
82 WHEREAS, Pasco County has paid $186,776.38 of the final
83 judgment, and
84 WHEREAS, on March 6, 2015, Pasco County and the Guerrero
85 family reached a settlement in this matter for the payment of
86 1.5 million in addition to the amount previously paid, NOW,
87 THEREFORE,