SBI and Gratton Lawsuit Trial

[Serious News]

As many of you know, the trial has begun. Here is the link to the complaint being heard.


http://cdn2.hubspot.net/hub/442422/f...=1421195325005


It can also be watched on Courtroom View: http://cvn.com/

[Ratickle]

I almost did not allow this to be put up as I have close friends on both sides of the issue. If you feel like discussing this on here, be polite. That the trial is so close to the Joey Gratton Memorial Fun Run seems a bit ironic. No matter what happens at this trial, Joey will still be gone and racing offshore boats will still be dangerous.

RIP Joey

[Serious News]

A link to Speed On The Water's overview story.

http://speedonthewater.com/in-the-ne...-lawsuit-trial

[appsyscons]

Most of you know I am a long time professional offshore boat racer, with friends on all
sides of this case. There is no question that the loss of life in racing is a tragedy, and
nothing can reverse that loss. When this case of over, most likely the only winners will
be the lawyers.

[Ratickle]

Yeah, the one thing I am hoping for is that some safety improvements are figured out because of the expertise required from the safety experts.

[Bobcat]

From the KW Citizen today.

Powerboat lawsuit begins
BY ADAM LINHARDT Citizen Staff
alinhardt@keysnews.com
A wrongful death lawsuit filed by the widow of a man killed during the 2011 Key West World Championship powerboat races began last week in Fort Lauderdale.

Page Motorsports throttleman Joey Gratton, 59, drowned during a particularly deadly week of racing that year.

The twin-engine, 38-foot Douglas Marine Skater catamaran he was driving overturned on the first turn in the final lap of the second race on the 6.1-mile course, trapping Gratton in a rescue harness that was secured to the boat.

Steve Page, the boat's owner and driver, escaped major injury.

Gratton's widow, Priscilla Gratton, accused race organizers of using rescue personnel unfamiliar with the cockpits and emergency hatches on the boats.

Gratton sued Super Boat International (SBI) and its president, Key West resident John Carbonell. SBI previously argued the lawsuit should be dropped based on waivers signed by racers who participate, according to media reports.

Jury selection in the trial began two weeks ago and continued through Jan. 12. Opening arguments began Tuesday, said attorney Michael Allweiss of St. Petersburg, who represents Gratton.

Allweiss responded via email but could not be reached for further comment while in trial.

William Milliken of Coral Gables is the lawyer representing SBI. He could not be reached for comment for the same reason.

The trial is expected to last about three weeks, Allweiss reportedly told speedonthewater.com

Gratton was one of three men to die in the 2011 powerboat races in Key West.

Throttleman and owner Robert "Bob" Morgan, 74, of Sunrise Beach, Mo., and driver Jeffrey "J.T." Tillman, 47, of Kaiser, Mo., were killed when their four-engine, 46-foot catamaran called Big Thunder caught air and flipped over on its third lap in Key West Harbor.

William Tillman, a relative of Tillman, filed a lawsuit against SBI in November 2013. That lawsuit also accuses race organizers of using untrained rescue personnel.

That case remains pending, also in Broward County.

No criminal charges have been filed in either incident. The deaths of all three men were ruled accidental by medical examiners.

[Serious News]

The lawsuit against Super Boat International, John Carbonell, Donald DiPetrillo and others has been settled. Terms have not been released yet, if ever.

[Serious News]

[Serious News]

More short clips

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNS...TibvoJr-xfeILw

[Serious News]

The terms of the settlement are confidential.

[Serious News]

Settlement In Case vs. Super Boat International With No Finding of Liability

By SBI on January 22, 2015 in Blog, Press Release

Key West, Fla. (January 22nd, 2015) – Super Boat International (SBI) announces today that all parties in the recent case regarding the death of Joey Gratton in the 2011 Key West World Championships settled with no finding of liability on the part of Super Boat International or any of the defendants. Additional details were not disclosed.

The outcome of the settlement follows last Friday’s court session held in the 17th Judicial Circuit Court in Fort Lauderdale. All members of the Super Boat family and offshore race teams are thankful to have this situation behind them and now can move forward in the upcoming year. Owner of Super Boat International, John Carbonell, comments on the recent outcome. “I hope this can bring some closure for the Gratton family. There is no winner when it comes to legal matters over someone’s life and we wish for only the best possible future for Joey’s family.”

Legal council for SBI’s insurance company chose to settle matters prior to the defense presenting their case. Coming to a quick close proved to be a more amicable solution for all parties and spared Joey’s family from having to testify. Those who are involved in high performance boating and offshore racing are aware of the inherent risks. Offshore powerboat racing is a powerful and high performance sport and is not any different than that of Formula 1 and NASCAR. With the passion and adrenaline that comes in this type of industry, danger and accidents are unsurprising.

14DD6570“The training and procedures used today have come from an evolution over the past 21 years. The team operation is based on the USCG Rescue Swimmer entry level program, with the addition of SCUBA to access overturned race boats. This past July the team announced a certification from the National Association of Underwater Instructors (NAUI) for Offshore and Public Safety. This program requires a level of conditioning and proficiency unmatched in Offshore Racing. All team members are certified in both helicopter and boat deployment to any accident that may occur on a race course. Combined in the program is training for the Racers to formulate an exit strategy and become proficient in the use of their onboard safety systems using Water Test “Dunker” Training provided throughout the Racing season. We are proud to function as a team and look forward to the 2015 season,” comments David Harshfield, safety coordinator for Super Boat.

Super Boat International is excited about the upcoming 2015 season, shown in the schedule outlined below. “We are now focusing all our efforts on the 2015 season and we have a lot to prepare for. We have a full schedule and our first race is set to kick off in Cocoa Beach this May,” comments Carbonell. Recently, teams have shown a great outpouring of enthusiasm for this season, from building new race boats, to scheduling hotels in advance, to requesting details for all upcoming races. This excitement comes on the heels of one of the most exciting World Championship events in many years.

14DD6536-2This year will bring back a previous race site, Marathon, Florida, which will play host during the Fourth of July weekend. Live coverage for this event and all race events will capture the action and excitement on the racecourse and will be aired on the SBI Livestream channel. Visit superboat.com for all the updates coming for this year’s races, hotel information and new things coming to participating race teams and Super Boat International.

Follow Super Boat International race teams and the SBI race schedule below. All Super Boat races are streamed live around the world and can be seen at http://new.livestream.com/sbi. Register online for free with Livestream, follow the Super Boat Livestream channel and set your preferences to get a text notification when racing is about to begin. The 2014 season enjoyed the largest number of online viewers to superboat.com and live engagement to the Super Boat Livestream channel.

http://superboat.com/2015/01/settlem...ing-liability/

[Bobcat]

From the Citizen today

Powerboat lawsuit settled
BY ADAM LINHARDT Citizen Staff
alinhardt@keysnews.com
A wrongful death lawsuit filed by the widow of a man killed during the 2011 Key West World Championship powerboat races was settled Tuesday as the trial was under way, said an attorney representing the widow.

The estate of Page Motorsports throttleman Joey Gratton, 59, settled its civil lawsuit against Super Boat International (SBI) and its president, Key West resident John Carbonell, among others, said attorney Michael Allweiss of St. Petersburg. Allweiss represents Gratton's widow, Priscilla.

The terms of the settlement were not disclosed, but under the agreement SBI assumes no admission of liability which is typical for such resolutions, Allweiss said.

Gratton's lawsuit alleged that race organizers used rescue personnel unfamiliar with the cockpits and emergency hatches on the boats. SBI previously argued the lawsuit should be dropped based on waivers signed by racers who participate.

"Winning this case to us means that we proved this was a simple accident, it should have been a simple rescue and had they used trained, professional rescuers Joey Gratton would be alive today," Allweiss said. "Speaking with jurors after the case, they saw that clearly and agreed with that. I believe we would have gotten a very strong verdict based on our conversation with them (jurors)."

The jury trial began last week at the Broward County state courthouse in Fort Lauderdale and was expected to last at least two weeks.

Gratton drowned during a deadly week of racing during the 2011 championships. The twin-engine, 38-foot Douglas Marine Skater catamaran he was driving overturned on the first turn in the final lap of the second race on the 6.1-mile course, trapping Gratton in a rescue harness that was secured to the boat.

Steve Page, the boat's owner and driver, escaped major injury. He gave emotional testimony last week that he was pleading with rescuers to cut Gratton out of his harness after the crash, Allweiss said.

His testimony, among others for the Gratton side, presented an "avalanche of evidence," Allweiss said.

"We made a demand and within a couple of hours they accepted the demand without any negotiation or haggling," Allweiss said. "Short of a jury verdict, I don't know how else you define victory."

William Milliken of Coral Gables is the lawyer representing SBI. He confirmed the settlement was reached, but declined to comment further.

Gratton was one of three men to die in the 2011 powerboat races in Key West.

Throttleman and owner Robert "Bob" Morgan, 74, of Sunrise Beach, Mo., and driver Jeffrey "J.T." Tillman, 47, of Kaiser, Mo., were killed when their four-engine, 46-foot catamaran called Big Thunder caught air and flipped over on its third lap in Key West Harbor.

William Tillman, a relative of Tillman, filed a lawsuit against SBI in November 2013. That lawsuit also accuses race organizers of using untrained rescue personnel.

That case remains pending, also in Broward County.

No criminal charges have been filed in either incident. The deaths of all three men were ruled accidental by medical examiners.

alinhardt@keynews.com

[Serious News]

The post trial spin is certainly interesting.

[Serious News]

Lawsuit over 2011 drowning of powerboat racer is settled

By Sue Cocking -
scocking@MiamiHerald.com

01/24/2015 7:57 PM
Updated: 01/25/2015 12:06 PM

More than three years after powerboat racer Joey Gratton was killed during the Key West World Championships, a wrongful death lawsuit filed by his widow was settled midway through trial last week in Broward Circuit Court.

Terms of the settlement between Priscilla Gratton and the defendants, including Super Boat International president John Carbonell, were not disclosed. But St. Petersburg attorney Michael Allweiss, representing Gratton, called it “an enormous settlement.”

Under the agreement, Carbonell and his co-defendants were not held liable for the racer’s November 2011 death.

The lawsuit accused Super Boat International, Carbonell, and his hired rescue staff of a slow and incompetent response when Gratton’s boat, Page Motorsports, overturned during the final race of the three-race series. Driver Steve Page escaped without injury, but Gratton was trapped upside down in his seat by his safety harness and drowned before rescuers could pull him out.

“We proved everything we alleged about SBI and then some,” Allweiss said. “It was a complete victory for the Grattons and Steve Page, who made every heroic effort to save Joey.”

Carbonell said in a statement that his organization and offshore racers are thankful to have the situation behind them.

“I hope this can bring some closure for the Gratton family,” Carbonell said. “There is no winner when it comes to legal matters over someone’s life and we wish for only the best possible future for Joey’s family.”

Two other racers were killed during the 2011 championships. Missourians Bob Morgan and Jeffrey Tillman drowned when their Big Thunder catamaran flipped upside down in Key West Harbor. A lawsuit filed by Tillman’s family is pending.

Carbonell has long insisted that powerboat racers are well aware of the risks involved in the high-performance sport, which is similar to Formula 1 and NASCAR on the water. SBI stepped up its safety protocols and rescue procedures in the wake of the three deaths. No one has died in a world championship since then.

Carbonell said Super Boat is excited about the upcoming racing season culminating in the November 2015 Key West Worlds.

Retorted Allweiss: “If I were a racer, I’d never go anywhere near those people. They are going to kill somebody else.”

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/sports/ou...#storylink=cpy

[Ratickle]

I hope Michael is wrong and that they learned something from going through this tragedy to make sure nothing like it ever happens again.