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Local Attorney Inspires Policy Changes after One of the Largest

 Verdicts in the US in a Landmark Drunk Driving Case Win

NORCROSS, GA –– After a jury awarded a $40 million verdict to the parents of two teenagers killed in a drunk driving accident, attorney Claudine Wilkins says that the fight has just begun.  Wilkins, an attorney in Norcross, pursued a wrongful death suit for three years against a drunk driver, plus a liquor liability case against the bar owners where the 20-year-old driver had been drinking.  This decision, reached in the Cobb County Superior Court has been called a “landmark case” as it marked one of the largest verdicts in the country against a drunk driver and the establishment that served him. “Today we finally received a portion of the settlement with Dos Naciones -- the bar that served the defendant,” Wilkins said.

“While the verdict is large enough to make one sit up and take notice, it is ultimately a symbolic victory for the teen’s families,” said Wilkins. “This verdict, we hope, sends an important message to those who drink and drive and those who provide or sell alcohol. People who throw parties in their homes are liable under the Liquor Liability laws too,” she said.

“This award will perhaps make (bar owners) think twice — that if they allow their customers to terrorize the roadways after they’ve been drinking, the courts can come after them for everything they’ve got,” said Kenny Shackleford, father of one of the victims, Christopher Shackleford.

Sergio Montelongo Sanchez, an illegal alien, was convicted in July 2001 of vehicular homicide for killing three teenagers and crippling a fourth victim in a car crash that occurred on July 29, 2000.  Much of the attention in this case centered not just on the drunk driver, but also the bar where the defendant had been drinking.  Sanchez was a minor on the evening he went to Dos Naciones, a Marietta bar that had been cited before for serving underage patrons.  Sanchez allegedly had been served 10 to 15 beers that night.  He staggered out of the bar and into his large Lincoln Continental around 1 a.m. when he swerved from his own lane and crossed into oncoming traffic.  He struck a Honda Civic less than a mile away from Dos Naciones and killed three young passengers: Christopher Shackleford, 19, of Woodstock; Julianne Pascoe, 19, of Kennesaw; and Miechelle “Kelli” Bourgeois, 19, of Woodstock.  A fourth victim, Matthew Hunt, was permanently handicapped.  

Wilkins interviewed the defendant in jail and learned that he was underage and was never carded by the bouncers, bartenders or any employee at the bar.  After her own investigation, Wilkins also discovered that the bar was operating with an expired liquor license and was, therefore, selling drinks illegally. Wilkins hired a private investigator and reported the violations to the police. “I thought the department of revenue should know that Dos Naciones was operating without a valid license, and beer and liquor distributors were also illegally supplying them with alcohol. In this bar, minors were not only being served, the owners were charging them extra and looking the other way,” Wilkins said.  After Wilkins provided evidence to the police, the police raided Dos Naciones and briefly shut it down.  One of the owners, Antonio Ortiz Gonzalaz, was handcuffed and put in jail.  The license was renewed for a mere $500, four months after the teens’ deaths and the bar was immediately reopened. The beer distributors were cited for illegally selling to an unlicensed bar and received a nominal fine of $1,000 each.  “That was a slap on the wrist,” said Wilkins. “Distributors selling illegally should also be held more accountable.”  

Wilkins took a special interest in this case after spending time with the victims’ families.   Now representing other catastrophic injury and liquor liability cases, the former prosecuting attorney aims to raise the roof on more bars, convenience stores and party hosts who allow patrons and/or friends to become lethal weapons behind the wheel.  

“When working as a prosecuting attorney, I was surprised at the nonchalant attitude of the defendants, and I am disturbed by how much damage (drunk drivers) are getting away with.  My ultimate goal is to see heavier penalties for bar owners and more severe punishments for killers behind the wheel,” Wilkins said.  “I spent three years with these grieving families, and I want everyone to know that one mistake can take away others’ lives and ruin your own.  Remember, Sanchez was only 20 years old, did not have a record, or a previous DUI and he had never been in trouble with the law before.  He will not resume a normal life until he is in his sixties--old enough to retire.  If winning this case sends a message that saves a few lives, then it was worth my time,” she said.  

Parents of the victims in the Sanchez case banded together to form a non-profit support group called STOP (Stop the Other Person) which is designed to educate and encourage peers to stop friends from drinking and driving.  Wilkins, known in the area as an expert in DRAM Shop (Liquor Liability Case) law, has written articles about the specialized laws for providers of alcohol, punitive damages that can be enforced for alcohol related claims, and other controversial issues. Wilkins volunteers to speak for victim’s rights groups and conducts free legal educational seminars on the latest and specialized liquor liability laws.   “I want to ensure that more cases like this one reach a verdict that holds the offender and the establishments accountable,” she said.