Wrongful Death Suit Filed Against Track

A wrongful death suit has been filed in Orange County Superior Court in Santa Ana against Los Alamitos Race Course and other defendants in the death of jockey Juan Limon, killed when his horse, Ima Dashing Lady, fell during a race at the track on July 23, 1994.

The suit was filed in behalf of Limon’s wife, Rosa, their child, and two other children from a previous relationship. They are seeking damages to be determined by the trial.

The suit alleges negligent hiring, training and supervising, along with negligent enforcement of safety regulations. Product liability also is alleged against an unnamed manufacturer of the Caliente Safety Helmet.

Also named as defendants were Ima Dashing Lady’s owners, Winfred R. Sherrill and Joyce Lee Sherrill, trainer Blane Schvaneveldt, the California Racing Board, the Horseman’s Quarter Horse Racing Assn. and an unnamed veterinarian and farrier.

“We’re still in discovery on the case,” said attorney Jack Nelson, who represents the plaintiffs. “But I’ve looked at the video of the race and compared it to the autopsy report, and the cause of death appears to be due to head trauma. It appears to us that the helmet may have been defective.”

Limon suffered brain damage and died about 30 minutes after the race in the emergency room at Los Alamitos Medical Center. He was 35.

A native of Jalisco, Mexico, Limon was living in Buena Park when he died.