rantoul lawsuit

[PilotMike 0]

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It is not a matter of winning and profiting from this tragedy.

Then, can't you/they sue for one dollar? I believe I've heard of this being done before. The judgement was for $1. If it's about the truth that comes out during litigation, then I guess that's more than enough.

Edited for you to you/they

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Benefitting from the 'free capture of verticality.'

[Jimbo 0]

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It is a matter of ALL the truth coming out.

PilotMike makes a good point, how much are you (or they) suing for?

-
Jim

"Like" - The modern day comma
Good bye, my friends. You are missed.

[flyangel2 2]

From the October issue of Skydiving:

"The complaint consists of several counts and is 42 pages long. It alleges that the defendants failed to exercise ordinary care for the safety of others at the annual event and thus were negligent, and this negligence resulted in Kalendek's death. It asks for compensation "in an amount in excess of $50,000" for each of the various counts."

"After more facts are uncovered, both the plaintiffs and defendants will evaluate the strengths of their positions and what would likely happen if the case actually goes to trial. Some may decide it's to their advantage to forego a trial and settle."

I think that's the bottom line. Sometimes people settle rather than go through all the hassle and expense of a trial.

Again, if it's not about the money, then why all the people named in the lawsuit, and why that amount of money?

May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view. May your mountains rise into and above the clouds. - Edward Abbey

[winsor 236]

Quote

Quote

It is a matter of ALL the truth coming out.

PilotMike makes a good point, how much are you (or they) suing for?

As an aside, since the poster implies that he is privy to THE TRUTH (tm), how come he didn't let everyone in on the secret from the get-go?

When people get mysterious I assume they are full of shit, but that's just me.

Put the video up on a website somewhere - I'm sure someone impartial will donate the space - and provide a breakdown of the sequence of events that exonerates Tim and places responsibility elsewhere. Let the case stand on its own merits, and get away from the emotionalism.

If one has a first-hand account of the events in question but refuses to share it, I can't see they have a right to bitch that people are stuck with secondhand accounts that they think are flawed. It's kind of a put up or shut up situation.

If there is a defense of Tim's actions out there, let's hear it.

Either way, the suit is nothing short of evil.


Blue skies,

Winsor

[Patman 0]

Mike, you make a great point. I wonder who is really looking for the truth, the family and friends, or the ones who stand to "benefit" financially from any wining verdict. This just sucks, but why can't the public view the evidence and decide for themselves as was already said. Hide the evidence and feed the media, that will always get the general public stewing over how this could have happened without any real truthful information backing it up. SUCKS!

Don't tell me I can't! I already know that! Haven't you seen my x-rays?

[Waldschrat 0]

After all that years.... What was the decision of the lawsuit?

......and if he is active on this board: What do you see different to this days skydivr000?

[CSpenceFLY 1]

I don't remember how the suit came out. Over time I'm sure he realized the guy fucked up and got himself killed.

[jumpwally 0]

How about the actual lawsuit, did it get settled or is it still bouncing around ? Is the 412 still flying ? just curious......

smile, be nice, enjoy life
FB # - 1083

[ruleofpull 0]

This is all I could dig up on the lawsuit. The blog said it was dropped by November 2003.
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:8XPtUVu_kB8J:patrick-rice.net/daybook/page/438/+Timothy+Kalendek+helicopter&cd=5&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=ca&source=www.google.ca

"An article in today’s paper lists the twelve defendants in the Timothy Kalendek
wrongful-death suit (previously mentioned on August 14):

Bell Helicopter;
Textron Financial Corp.;
Cessna Financial Corp.;
Textron, Inc.;
the World Free Fall Convention;
Don Kirlin (its president);
USA Air;
the Village of Rantoul;
Rantoul National Aviation Center;
Precision Aviation;
Rodney M. Tinney (pilot of the helicopter);
Air Center Helicopters (Tinney’s employer).

The judge in the case has dismissed all charges against the first four
companies, on the grounds that building a helicopter or lending money to
someone who wants to buy a helicopter does not obligate one to pay money
to the next-of-kin of nitwits who try to get a close-up of a helicopter
in the process of taking off.

It’s too bad the remaining charges weren’t dismissed also. This is no
more than a crass money-grab by Kalendek’s family and their lawyers.

Update: The County Clerk’s web site tells me that on November 18th, 2003, plaintiffs in this case dropped all remaining claims. I hope this means their crass money-grab was unsuccessful.

Posted in General.

Comments Off

By Pat – October 24, 2003"

[Jld008 0]

Timothy Kalendek was my uncle. His death wrecked my family. I didn’t know him well, as I wasn’t even a year old when he died, but the accident still shakes me to this day. Was he in the wrong place at the wrong time? Yes. But was his death his fault? No. So to all the people saying that he is at fault; let me ask you this: if your family members life was viciously ripped away from you in a matter of seconds by a pilot, would you blame that family member? I believe that Rod Tinney should be held accountable for his actions. He is able to continue with his life, but my uncle is not. I can only imagine what my life would be like if my uncle Timmy was still in it today. I hope he would be proud of my sister, my mom and I. We all miss him more than I can express here. I think about him every day, wondering what life would be like if he came home from that convention. I strive to live my life like he did, careless and free, but I can’t help but cry as I write this, wishing my funny uncle Tim was here to support me through college. It’s been a little over 17 years since the accident, and i can assure every single one of you that it doesn’t hurt any less today than it did the day it happened. I love and miss him more than anything, and I hope that he’s up there watching over us, knowing that we spend every day wishing he was down here with us, but at the same time knowing that he is in a better place. 

 

In eternal free fall, 

Jenna Dausch 

Edited August 28, 2019 by Jld008

[billvon 2,990]

42 minutes ago, Jld008 said:

Timothy Kalendek was my uncle. His death wrecked my family. I didn’t know him well, as I wasn’t even a year old when he died, but the accident still shakes me to this day. Was he in the wrong place at the wrong time? Yes. But was his death his fault? No. So to all the people saying that he is at fault; let me ask you this: if your family members life was viciously ripped away from you in a matter of seconds by a pilot, would you blame that family member?

If it was their fault - yes. 

Note that that doesn't mean they were evil, or that they were bad people.  It just means they made a mistake.  I've made them - and gotten away with them.  I've stopped my students from making fatal mistakes, like walking into the propeller of an Otter.  I am sure you've made mistakes, too.  If (god forbid) someday you make a mistake and it kills you, it will be your fault.  Not because you are bad, but because you made a mistake.

[meat.missile 25]

For everyone else that was out of the loop, here is the relevant info. 

Accident Docket

Final Report

 

 

 

[fallfast69 3]

Jenna...he made a horrible mistake. There is no one else that can take the blame for that. I'm sure Rod thinks of this tragedy often...even though it wasn't something he had any control over. Very sad and completely avoidable. My condolences to you and your family.

[primetime 18]

I was at WFFC on the day of this tragic accident and the next day I helped search the cornfield for evidence.  I was also acquainted with Rod Tinney and flew in his 412 many times.  He was hands down the best helicopter pilot I’ve ever flown with...highly skilled and very safety conscious.  The accident happened in the blink of an eye, and even though Rod was not at fault and could not have prevented it, he took it hard.  IIRC, he did not fly any more during that year’s convention, and it took a lot of coaxing before he agreed to return in future years.

Some time later, Rod sat through an AFF course at a convention, and he did all 7 jumps in a couple of days.  He just wanted to “see what all the fuss was about.”  His 8th jump was a 16-way out of a CASA with his two instructors and a bunch of us LO’s and staff.

Edited September 5, 2019 by primetime