Suit Over Fatal Crash Settled for $4 Million : Courts: Civil case against Dr. Ronald Allen was brought by daughters of couple killed in 1993 collision.

Avoiding another traumatic trial, the teen-age daughters of a Mission Viejo couple killed when a physician intoxicated on alcohol and drugs slammed into their car reached a settlement of about $4 million Thursday with the doctor and two companies.

The settlement in the wrongful-death lawsuit filed on behalf of Karie and Shelbie Minzey came Thursday before jury selection was about to start in the civil case against Dr. Ronald Allen and National Car Rental System, which had rented the doctor a car.

The girls had already been through a criminal trial in which Allen, a 33-year-old Laguna Beach physician specializing in AIDS treatment, was convicted of second-degree murder and later sentenced to 18 years to life in prison.

“They don’t have to come to court and relive everything,” said David W. Berglund, an attorney representing the Minzey sisters. “That was a terror for them. They were really concerned about that.”

Berglund said the overall settlement was less than they hoped for, but will cover Karie’s medical bills and allow Shelbie, who just graduated from high school, to attend college.

Karie Minzey, then 12, was critically injured in the July 11, 1993, crash that killed her parents, Mark and Noreen Minzey, and injured two friends riding home with them from a softball game. Her sister, now 17, was not riding in the car.

Karie Minzey, who has since moved with her sister to live with an aunt and uncle in Georgia, has made a remarkable recovery but has been left with about $1 million in medical bills, Berglund said. She can expect $800,000 to $1 million in medical expenses in the future, he said.

The settlement with Allen and the rental company, which did not admit any liability, also includes terms from an agreement reached earlier this year with the maker of the family’s Dodge. How much each will pay under the settlement was sealed and the court has yet to give final approval to the agreement.

Allen became one of the few drivers in Orange County to be charged and convicted of second-degree murder for taking lives while driving under the influence. He had been drinking and had taken five prescription drugs when the vehicle he was driving crashed head-on into the car on Santiago Canyon Road. Prosecutors argued that his medical background and two prior arrests on suspicion of driving under the influence made him aware of the risks of getting behind the wheel while impaired.

The lawsuit against the doctor was based on similar allegations. Berglund said Allen did not contest liability in the civil case. Allen’s lawyer could not be reached Thursday for comment.

In the case of National, the family alleged the company violated its internal policies in renting Allen the car by failing to have him read and sign a form asking about his driving record. The family contended that Allen could not have honestly signed the form because of his past driving problems.

But in court documents, National argued that its internal policy was irrelevant, and the company followed state law in renting the car to Allen. State law requires a valid driver’s license for car rentals, and Allen had presented a temporary license, according to court documents.

Superior Court Judge Robert C. Todd agreed with National and would have excluded evidence about the internal policy, a ruling Berglund said came as a blow to his case and helped prompt the settlement.

John Larson, an attorney representing National, declined to comment on the settlement.

Earlier this year, the sisters reached a $1-million settlement with Chrysler, arising from a separate lawsuit alleging that defects in the family’s car contributed to the deaths and injuries, according to court documents.

The car company denied the allegations but offered to settle because of the “significant expense Chrysler would incur in completing its investigation, discovery and trial preparation and defending this case through trial and appeal,” according to the settlement document.