Heres the story
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Front Sight Firearms Training Institute settles with family of man killed
www.privateofficer.com
LAS VEGAS NV Oct 15 2011-- After more than four years, the family of a man killed in a zipline accident at a southern Nevada gun range has finally received some measure of justice.
Jesus Valencia died in full view of his family during a Fourth of July celebration at the Front Sight Firearms Training Institute near Pahrump, and the resulting lawsuit reveals new details about the events that lead to his death.
Front Sight's settlement with the Valencia family is confidential, but 8 News NOW is familiar with the terms. Valencia's wife and two children will receive more than $2 million to end their wrongful death suit, with the last payment due in 2013. Front Sight does not admit wrongdoing in the settlement papers, other than to acknowledge it did not have liability insurance to cover the incident.
But four years worth of legal filings suggests negligence by the company and employees caused the death of a beloved husband and father.
"When I got there, he was dying. He was leaving me. I told him not to leave me, that I wanted him here," said Valencia's wife Dalia Valencia.
Jesus Valencia died in front of his wife, his two young children, and his parents when he slammed into the steel platform of a scissor lift used to lower participants from a zipline.
"We lost our son because of negligence, because of something that could have been avoided if people were trained like they're supposed to. It shouldn't have happened," said Velencia's father Jesus Valencia, III.
Valencia's father's suspicions seem solidified in the hundreds of pages of legal documents filed in his wrongful death suit. Only portions of depositions from Front Sight employees have been released, but the information tells the tale of what happened that day.
Deposition testimony from Front Sight Operation's Manager Brad Ackman details the zipline's safety procedures. Participants, Ackman explains, should be tethered to the tower to prevent falls or premature take-off. Yet John Pierson, the employee manning the platform, acknowledges he hooked Valencia only to the zipline as he was instructed.
Pierson says there was no discussion during his five minutes of training on the apparatus about how the employee at the top should communicate with the employee at the bottom. As a result, Pierson explains, neither employee exchanged a verbal or visual all clear signal before Valencia slid down the line.
"When he went down, I heard somebody say something -- one of the other instructors say he shouldn't have left. So I turned to see what was the problem. Then I heard him say put it down or something," said Jesus Valencia, III.
Pierson had a radio that day, yet to his surprise, John Kinnel, the scissor lift operator below did not. Kinnel testifies he was still unhooking Valencia's 5-year-old daughter, who had ridden the zipline immediately before her dad, when he heard Valencia coming his way.
Kinnel says he yelled for help, and then realized, "It probably didn't do any good," and returned his attention to the child. Kinnel describes hearing Valencia strike the platform and then working to distract his daughter from her dying father.
"My daughter is devastated. She dreams and says her daddy fell and her daddy bled," said Dalia Valencia.
In his deposition, Ackman notes, "I can tell you the protocol was not followed. There is never an occasion when a participant should impact the scissors lift. No way."
Ackman points the finger at Pierson, as did Front Sight founder Dr. Ignatius Piazza, the self-proclaimed Millionaire Patriot, at least initially.
A letter sent to Front Sight members the day after Valencia's death says, "This tragedy was not the fault of our fallen first family member," meaning Valencia. But Piazza's subsequent written accounts increasingly shift responsibility to Valencia himself.
Currently posted on Front Sight's website, Piazza writes, "Evidentially, the participant was distracted by his family."
Yet in deposition testimony, Ackman says, "I have no reason to think that the Valencias would be able to distract the people that are up on the platform. It's a very focused job."
"I don't want this to happen to another family, to another member, what happened to us. Front Sight, tell us the truth," said Dalia Valencia.
Front Sight settled just before trial after four years of contentious litigation. In court records, Piazza is accused of intentionally obstructing the process. The court sanctioned Front Sight repeatedly for failing to follow orders and Piazza was a no show more than once for his scheduled deposition.
Because of the confidential nature of the settlement, the Valencia family and their attorneys declined to comment for this story. Front Sight did not respond to requests for comment.
Source:8NewsNow
Posted by PRIVATE OFFICER BREAKING NEWS at 5:06 AM
Just that based on my recollection, Front Sight has some issues.