Mother files suit against son
by admin on 27/07/10 at 10:26 am
Charleston Daily Mail
By Cheryl Caswell
July 27, 2010
A mother is suing one of her sons, claiming he was negligent while watching a younger brother who was hit by a car.
Nancy Myers and Jeff Young filed suit July 20 in Kanawha Circuit Court against her son, Cory Jarrett. According to the complaint, Jarrett was charged with watching his younger stepbrother, 14-year-old Skyler Young, on July 22 and 23 of 2008 at their home on Eden’s Fork Road.
While Myers was out of town, according to the lawsuit, Jarrett invited between 10 and 15 friends over for a party in the late evening hours of July 22. Jarrett was under 21 at the time of the incident.
During the party, Jarrett’s friends “began hazing Skyler Young and eventually locked him in his room sometime after midnight.” Young escaped from his room and went outside to the driveway to talk on his phone.
When it was discovered the boy was not in his room and he was not found in the house, the partygoers began to search for him. According to the court document, Brandon Rinehart, 21, got into his Ford Explorer and backed out of the driveway and ran over Young.
Rinehart is also being sued.
The Myers say Jarrett breached his duty to supervise Young when those at the house hazed him and locked him up and later when he was in the driveway. Rinehart, they say, is also to blame for hitting him.
Police were called to the home about 1 a.m. that day, the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Department said at the time. Deputies said the victim was taken to Charleston Area Medical Center and his injuries were not life-threatening.
Rinehart was identified as the driver, but the sheriff’s department said no one was at fault and no charges would be filed.
The lawsuit says Skyler suffered “severe and extensive personal injuries” and has incurred medical, surgical and rehabilitation expenses.
t contends the younger boy suffered a severe and permanent head injury, scarring and disfigurement and has been unable to return to normal schooling. The suit says he requires “educational accommodations.”
They are asking for unspecified compensatory damages from the older brother and from Rinehart. They are also asking for punitive damages, calling their actions “reprehensible, willful, wanton and reckless.”
