Re: [californiadisasters] P.G.& E Is All Heart

This isn't as tasteless as it seems; it's one of the first arguments in a
civil case (and often in criminal cases) that the victim is at fault. One
example of this is in an episode of "Emergency!", where a man slams into a
power pole hard enough to snap the pole, critically injuring the worker atop
the pole. Not only does he demand to be treated first (for a cut on his
forehead, vs. the worker hanging unconscious from the pole), but blames the
workers for supposedly not having put up proper barricades and/or flags.

So I read this as PG&E assuring us that they aren't even considering that
strategy, which means that they're turning this from a "Who's going to win?"
situation into a "How much will we have to pay you?" situation. As legal
situations go, that's quite a step, even in a case like this.

----- Original Message -----
From: "Kim Noyes" <kimnoyes@gmail.com>
To: "CaliforniaDisasters" <californiadisasters@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Tuesday, July 12, 2011 10:50 PM
Subject: [californiadisasters] P.G.& E Is All Heart

> PG&E says it won't blame San Bruno victims
>
> Jaxon Van Derbeken, San Francisco Chronicle Staff Writer
> San Francisco Chronicle July 12, 2011 04:00 AM Copyright San Francisco
> Chronicle. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
> broadcast, rewritten or
>
redistributed.<http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/07/12/B
AKI1K9OJR.DTL&tsp=1#license-/c/a/2011/07/12/BAKI1K9OJR.DTL>
>
> Tuesday, July 12, 2011
>
> Pacific Gas and Electric Co. moved Tuesday to assure victims of the San
> Bruno natural gas pipeline explosion that it did not intend to argue in
> court that they were to blame for losses they suffered in the disaster.
>
> The company amended a filing it made last week in a case involving more
than
> 100 lawsuits seeking damages as a result of the Sept. 9 blast, which
killed
> eight people and destroyed 38 homes. In a statement, the company said it
> wanted to be "crystal clear that no one at PG&E would suggest that the
> plaintiffs or residents of San Bruno impacted by this accident are somehow
> at fault for the tragedy."
>
> The original filing in San Mateo County Superior Court listed a litany of
> potential defenses to the lawsuits. PG&E suggested that a third party may
> have damaged its "state of the art" pipeline, and it asserted both
> comparative and contributory negligence - legal standards that allow civil
> defendants to claim that victims' conduct contributed to their injuries
and
> should offset damages.
>
> In its amended filing Tuesday, the company said it "does not blame the
> plaintiffs and residents who have been affected by this terrible
accident."
>
> The new filing also said that money PG&E paid to victims after the
disaster
> was "given with no strings attached, and PG&E will not be seeking
> reimbursement."
>
> PG&E offered payments of as much as $50,000 to residents in the days after
> the blast, depending on damage to their homes.
>
> An attorney for 40 residents who have sued PG&E, however, pointed out that
> the company's amended filing still includes the original language that
could
> hold victims responsible for damages, as well as language that earlier
> payments to victims could bar them from making legal claims.
> <SNIP>
>
> Read entire article here:
>
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/07/12/BAKI1K9OJR.DTL#i
xzz1RxgPnfhQ
>
> --
> Check out http://groups.yahoo.com/group/californiadisasters/
> Read our blog at http://eclecticarcania.blogspot.com/
> Visit me on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/derkimster
>

------------------------------------

Be sure to check out our Links Section at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/californiadisasters/links
Please join our Discussion Group at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/californiadisasters_discussion/ for topical but extended discussions started here or for less topical but nonetheless relevant messages.Yahoo! Groups Links

<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/californiadisasters/

<*> Your email settings:
Individual Email | Traditional

<*> To change settings online go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/californiadisasters/join
(Yahoo! ID required)

<*> To change settings via email:
californiadisasters-digest@yahoogroups.com
californiadisasters-fullfeatured@yahoogroups.com

<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
californiadisasters-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com

<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/