Week in Review : MAJOR EVENTS, IMAGES AND PEOPLE IN ORANGE COUNTY NEWS : AT THE SCENE : Family Settles Claim in Disneyland Suit
On July 22, an Orange County jury decided that Disneyland’s medical treatment was negligent in the case of a young man stabbed to death in the park in 1981. The court award: $600,000.
Disney attorneys, who have earned a reputation of rarely losing a case before a jury, filed for a new trial.
But the family of the dead youth “wanted a final resolution and not to have it dragged into the appellate courts,” said John A. Luetto, an attorney for the victim’s family. So on Thursday, the mother and brother of Mel C. Yorba agreed to a secret settlement of their claim.
“My clients have been through a lot,” Luetto said.
Yorba was 18 when he was killed in Tomorrowland during a scuffle with another park visitor, who was subsequently convicted of murder. During the negligence trial against Disneyland, the park’s security and emergency medical policies and procedures were scrutinized.
Jurors said they found the park negligent because employees failed to follow a written policy which states paramedics should be called in the event of any life-threatening emergency.
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