$9.1 Million Jury Verdict Following 2020 Tree-Collapse Death of Beloved Suburban Philadelphia Golf Pro Justin Riegel
PHILADELPHIA, Sept. 09, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- $9.1 million in damages has been awarded by a Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas jury following the 2020 death of beloved Philmont C.C. golf professional Justin Riegel; he was fatally crushed by a massive, overgrown oak tree that course management should have assessed, condemned and removed. Saltz Mongeluzzi Bendesky represented Mr. Riegel’s widow and child, who was born after the horrific incident, at the two-week trial. The verdict is believed to be among the largest of its kind in a lethal, workplace tree-collapse case in Pennsylvania.
If he were alive today, Mr. Riegel would no doubt be teaching his now four-year-old son the finer points of the game he adored. Tragically, he was killed June 3, 2020 – three weeks before the baby was born – when, according to the wrongful death-negligence lawsuit, a massive red oak tree at the club violently uprooted, collapsing into the garage where Justin was storing golf carts amid a worsening, forecasted storm. Trial lawyers from Saltz Mongeluzzi Bendesky argued at trial that his death from crush injuries was predictable and preventable and that the defendants – including the club’s Florida-based owner-operator (Concert Golf Partners Holdco LLC) – ignored the ignored industry standards that urged risk assessments for trees in high traffic areas every three to five years.
The firm’s catastrophic tree-collapse legal team, headed by Robert J. Mongeluzzi and David L. Kwass, represented Justin’s life partner (the two met at another area golf club where he was the pro and she was the wedding planner) and the mother of their child (identified in court documents as HR). Besides asserting claims of wrongful death and negligence, the comprehensive civil action, included a survival action and sought damages.
Attorney Kwass, who has handled numerous other catastrophic structural tree-failure cases, said after last week’s verdict, “This case was from the start about obtaining justice for Justin and his family, including the son he never got to hold and love. We alleged, and proved at trial, that his death was a predictable and preventable tragedy. Our pre-suit investigation determined, and testimony at trial was unmistakable that the defendants should have known the hulking tree, with its overgrown trunk and canopy, leaning toward a high-traffic building squarely within its target zone, presented a foreseeable danger; one that could have been eliminated for $5,000, yet Philmont failed to act prior to the storm that had been accurately forecast for days by several weather services.”
He added, "The firm's due diligence also disclosed that the defendants removed four other oak trees nearby, but failed to order the removal of the overgrown, century-old tree that fatally crushed Justin." Firm attorneys Michael Zettlemoyer and Emily Grubb Coffing also worked on behalf of the plaintiff alongside Mr. Mongeluzzi and Mr. Kwass.
Mr. Zettlemoyer stated, “There are 9 million lessons to be learned for property owners, including golf course managers, following this verdict. Golf courses must diligently maintain their properties, and that includes their trees, which add beauty and environmental benefits, but only if they are properly maintained. The law is well settled for more than 100 years that the owner of a hazardous tree is no different than the owner of poorly maintained building – low-rise or skyscraper - that might be on the brink of collapse and causing catastrophic injuries. They have a duty to protect and failure to act is subject to legal consequences.”
Saltz Mongeluzzi Bendesky has recovered millions of dollars in damages on behalf of victims of tree failures, including nearly $3 million in a pre-suit settlement on behalf of a 41-year-old male golfer killed in 2022 by a collapsed, decayed tree while playing at an area course. The firm’s Denise Georges, who represented the plaintiff’s estate in that case, said, “The victim was riding in his golf cart when he was struck and killed.
Contacts:
David L. Kwass / dkwass@smbb.com / 215-575-2978
Robert J. Mongeluzzi / rmongeluzzi@smbb.com / 215-575-2989
Steph Rosenfeld / steph@idadvisors.com / 215-514-4101
Photos accompanying this announcement are available at
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