Family of Dead Cyclist bring $33 Million Wrongful Death Lawsuit Against Two Norfolk, VA Police Officers

By John Cooper,  Norfolk, VA Personal Injury Attorney

The death of a cyclist in Norfolk, VA in 2010 has resulted in a wrongful death lawsuit filed against two city police officers. 

The estate of Donnell Worsley filed the $33 million lawsuit against two Norfolk police officers involved in a crash in July 2010, that claimed Worsley’s life, the Virginian-Pilot reported.

The police officers were driving separate vehicles on July 25, 2010 side-by-side across the Campostella Bridge, where the victim was crossing the road on his bicycle, according to court records. He was struck in the 1600 block of E. Brambleton Ave and died on Nov. 3, 2010 after spending several months in a coma.

 In May 2011, one of the police officers involved in this tragic accident was convicted of reckless driving, the Virginian-Pilot reported.

The civil lawsuit brought over the death of Donnell Worsley claims speed was a factor in this tragic accident and the officers were traveling  in excess of 60 mph without emergency lights in an area where the speed limit is 30 mph.

 As an experienced Virginia (VA) attorney working exclusively with accident victims and their families I have dealt with many wrongful death cases and am familiar with the complexities of these cases.

Cyclists are vulnerable on the busy roads of cities such as Norfolk, VA and Virginia Beach, VA where there has been a spate of recent injuries.

Where a driver is at fault, a wrongful death lawsuit may be forthcoming. In Jan, 2011, the family of 22-year-old Nils Yannick Linke, a cyclist mown down by a driver, who has been charged with drunk driving in Oakland, California, filed a wrongful death lawsuit.

In other cases injured cyclists have recovered large amounts for their injuries caused by careless or reckless drivers.

Recently a bicyclist in Arlington, VA, was awarded a $3 million settlement after years of pain including a traumatic brain injury after he was hit by a car while traveling across a street on a crosswalk with a green light in his direction. In this case, a driver illegally turned right on red and hit the cyclist.

In another case a bicycle manufacturer faces a lawsuit for the traumatic brain injury suffered by a cyclist. The suit against Trek Bicycle Corp. was filed on behalf of Matthew Jacoby, a cyclist who was riding his 2002 Trek 2000 road bike in 2010, when its steering fork allegedly fractured, causing the handle bars to collapse.

The figures for cyclist deaths are alarming. In 2008, for instance, 716 were killed and 52,000 were injured in traffic crashes, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

The Norfolk based personal injury law firm, Cooper Hurley, handles automobile, truck, and motorcycle injuries. John Cooper and Jim Hurley have over 40 years of combined experience in handling auto injury accident claims. Attorney John Cooper has been named to Virginia “Super Lawyers” since 2010. Cooper Hurley represents people hurt in accidents in Norfolk, Virginia Beach, Portsmouth, Suffolk, Chesapeake, Hampton, Newport News and throughout VA, and always put the best interests of the our clients first.. The firm is recognized by other lawyers as “AV” by Martindale-Hubbell, a national attorney rating service, for our top level of legal skill and highest ethical standards. If you need help or advice about a serious injury, please call us ( 757) 455 -0077 or contact through this website.