Former Texas Supreme Court Chief Justice Tom Phillips (pictured), now a partner in the Austin office of Baker Botts, is a defendant in a wrongful-death suit in Bastrop County. In an Aug. 31 petition filed in the 335th District Court, the parents of a teenage girl killed in a March 2009 accident are suing defendants: Phillips; his wife Marilyn; their son Daniel; Glenda and Scott Halbert, as trustees of the Halbert Revocable Trust d/b/a Country Corner; and Point Horizon Properties LLC and Kiego LLC (collectively referred to in the petition as Beverage Barn). In the petition, the plaintiffs — Cheryl and Bobby King, individually and as representatives of their daughter's estate — allege that the Phillipses’ house “was well known in the Bastrop community as the location of frequent underage drinking parties.” In their petition, the plaintiffs allege the following: On the night of March 30, 2009, their daughter, Audrey, attended a party at the Phillips’ home. During the party, Tom and Marilyn Phillips were home and “were well aware that minors were getting drunk in their back yard.” Daniel Phillips “encouraged, and at times pressured Audrey to drink large amounts of alcohol” and when the “party became too loud, Mrs. Phillips forced Audrey and the others kids to leave in the middle of the night, even though they had been drinking for hours and were clearly intoxicated.” Audrey, who was a passenger in the vehicle that crashed, “died because of wrongful acts, carelessness, and neglect of defendants in providing her and other kids alcoholic beverages without any regard for Audrey’s safety or the welfare of others.” The plaintiffs’ causes of action include wrongful death of a minor child; wrongful acts, neglect and carelessness; and violations of the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Code. The plaintiffs also bring causes of action against the three Phillips defendants for negligence, gross negligence and negligence per se. The plaintiffs, who are represented by Dax Faubus and Harry Scarborough of Houston’s Faubus & Scarborough, are requesting a jury trial and economic, non-economic and exemplary damages. In response to a telephone call seeking comment, the Phillipses’ lawyer Richard Mithoff of Houston’s Mithoff Law Firm issued a statement that reads in part: “Tom and Lyn Phillips were profoundly saddened to learn of Audrey King’s tragic death and distressed to learn that she had been at their home the evening before. Her family has their heartfelt sympathy. Neither Judge nor Mrs. Phillips served or provided alcohol to anyone on the night before the accident. Nor did they knowingly allow anyone to consume alcohol or to become intoxicated on their premises. Judge and Mrs. Phillips categorically deny statements in the pleadings that they ‘were very much aware that their son and other Bastrop kids were regularly getting drunk at their house’ and that they ‘were well aware that minors were getting drunk in their backyard’ at any time prior to the accident.” The statement says those allegations are false and absurd. “Judge and Mrs. Phillips did not know Audrey had been a guest in their carriage house or anywhere else on their property that evening. Judge and Mrs. Phillips deny any other allegations suggesting otherwise,” the statement reads. In a telephone interview, Mithoff adds that on the night of the accident, Tom and Marilyn Phillips were asleep until sometime after midnight. “Mrs. Phillips was awakened by the sound of an engine revving," Mithoff says. As alleged in the petition, Country Corner and Beverage Barn sold alcohol to Audrey King and other minors on March 30, 2009. Scott and Glenda Halbert deny the allegations. A telephone listing for Point Horizon Properties and Kiego could not be located. Chris Griego, a representative for Point Horizon Properties and Kiego, declines to comment on the litigation because he has not seen the filing. Scarborough says prior to filing their suit, his clients attended two mediation sessions led by David Matthiesen of Houston's Matthiesen & Association but the two sides were unable to reach an agreement. Mithoff confirms both sides attended mediation with Matthiesen, but he declines further comment. Matthiesen did not immediately return a telephone call. Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission agent Tricia Rutledge, who investigated the circumstances surrounding Audrey King's death, says she will file a report by the end of September and that her findings indicate the Phillipses did not violate the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Code.
-- Miriam Rozen
Comments