Nash would need to show that granting her the right to sue would serve a larger public purpose, such as protecting others endangered, as well, O'Neill said. Many cases rejected by the claims commissioner but later approved by lawmakers have been dismissed by courts because of that issue, he said. He said the legislature would have to pass a special act pertaining to one person and that kind of law has been deemed unconstitutional. Nash, 59, now lives in a nursing home outside Boston and requires extensive 24-hour care.Įven if lawmakers vote to allow Nash to sue, there would be legal problems with that decision, said New Haven lawyer Joel Faxon, who is not involved in Nash's case.
But the chimp went berserk and ripped off Nash's nose, lips, eyelids and hands before being shot to death by a police officer. 16, 2009, to help lure her friend's 200-pound chimpanzee, named Travis, back inside. Nash reached a $4 million settlement last year with the estate of the chimp's owner, Sandra Herold, who died in 2010. "I really don't know that the legislature is going to award that kind of money," he said. O'Neill said lawmakers also could approve a financial award for Nash, but he noted her claim is for $150 million.
He recalled a losing appeal by a man who won $5.8 million in the lottery but missed the deadline to collect it by days in 1996. It's not like she has no claim on either our sympathies or on the potential for a sense of responsibility by the state towards her."īut O'Neill said sympathy alone would not be enough for Nash to prevail. "I think there are some interesting questions about what the role of the Department of Environmental Protection was and the degree to which they have any kind of responsibility for people who have these relatively exotic animals," O'Neill said. Arthur O'Neill, a Southbury Republican and member of the Judiciary Committee that will hear her appeal. That letter helps Nash's case, said state Rep. Several months before the attack, a biologist warned state officials in a memo that the chimpanzee could seriously hurt someone if it felt threatened, saying "it is an accident waiting to happen." Nash's lawyer, Charles Willinger Jr., said the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection should be held responsible for not seizing the chimpanzee before the attack. The state generally is immune to lawsuits, unless allowed by the claims commissioner. The commissioner on June 14 approved the state's motion to dismiss Nash's claim, saying the law at the time allowed private ownership of chimpanzees and didn't require officials to seize legal animals. "There's a fairly high threshold in order to hold the state accountable." "I would say there's a pretty strong burden of proof on a party that's seeking to challenge the claims commissioner's determination," said Senate Majority Leader Martin Looney, D-New Haven. Nash would also have to overcome a ban on laws that benefit one person and, experts say, a reluctance to authorize a potentially costly lawsuit in a state with financial woes. While Nash has lawmakers' sympathies, they deny most appeals of decisions by the state's claims commissioner. (AP) - Blocked in her bid to sue the state for $150 million, the woman mauled and disfigured by a chimpanzee in 2009 faces an uphill battle as she appeals to the legislature.Ĭharla Nash, who was blinded, lost both hands and underwent a face transplant, argues that officials knew the chimp was dangerous but didn't do anything about it. When she began the experiment involving the suspension of anti-rejection drugs in March, 2015, doctors said it would eventually include other patients and its findings could potentially affect hundreds of thousands of people, military and civilian alike.NEW HAVEN, Conn. She also underwent a double hand transplant, but it failed when her body rejected the tissue. She later received new facial features taken from a dead woman. Doctors also had to remove her eyes because of a disease transmitted by the chimp. Nash lost her nose, lips, eyelids and hands when she was mauled in 2009 by her employer’s 200-pound pet chimpanzee in Stamford, Connecticut. I believe in the power of prayer and appreciate everyone who is praying for me.” “I’m just happy I had the chance to help,” said Nash, adding that she feels fine. The face and the extremities are the most frequently injured parts of the body in war. through its hand and face transplantation program. The Pentagon, which also paid for Nash’s transplant, has provided grants to 14 medical facilities across the U.S. Article content Charles Krupa / Associated Press
This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.
0 kommentar(er)
