When an elderly person dies, his or her surviving relatives and friends often console themselves by remembering that the deceased person lived a long life, fulfilled his or her ambitions, and made peace with the things that were troublesome to him or her. The fact that the decedent reached an advanced age is little consolation, however, if he or she died in a preventable accident. The surviving family members of people who die because of someone else’s negligence have the right to file a civil lawsuit against the responsible parties and seek compensation for funeral expenses, medical bills arising from the decedent’s final illness and end-of-life care, and loss of companionship, regardless of the victim’s age. If the plaintiffs depended on the victim financially, such as if the victim was a parent of minor children, the plaintiffs may also seek compensation for the income the victim would have been able to provide if the accident had not happened. Wrongful death lawsuits are an option regardless of whether the cause of death was a motor vehicle accident, a medical error, a consumer product malfunction, or any other kind of preventable accident. If a family member of yours died in a traffic accident, cutting short his or her retirement, contact a Santa Fe motor vehicle accident lawyer.
Retired Physicist Dies in Traffic Accident in Los Alamos
Charles McMillan had a successful career as a physicist and director of research labs. He participated in research teams that studied everything from climate change to nuclear weapons to the efforts to develop an HIV vaccine. For 18 years, he worked at Los Alamos National Laboratory, eventually serving as its director until his retirement in 2017. Before that, he worked in various laboratories in California for more than two decades.
Unfortunately, McMillan’s retirement was not nearly as long as his career. In September 2024, he suffered fatal injuries in a car accident on Main Hill in Los Alamos, near the lab where he used to work. News reports did not give any details about the accident except to say that it involved two vehicles and that four additional people were injured seriously enough to require medical treatment. McMillan was 69 years old.
There have been no published reports about the cause of the accident and whether anyone has faced criminal charges for it. Even if it does not result in criminal charges, McMillan’s family members have the right to file a wrongful death case against the at-fault driver or any other parties responsible for the accident. Plaintiffs in wrongful death lawsuits can still win their cases even if the defendant in the wrongful death lawsuit is acquitted in criminal court or does not face criminal charges.
Contact Slate Stern About Car Accident Lawsuits
Slate Stern is a personal injury lawyer who represents plaintiffs injured in motor vehicle accidents. Contact Slate Stern in Santa Fe, New Mexico, or call (505)814-1517 to discuss your case.
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