HOUSTON, April 27, 2015 /PRNewswire/ --The family members
of a young man who died from electrical shock after heroically
helping rescue his youngest brother from a hotel swimming pool two
years ago have reached a financial settlement with the operators of
the hotel.
Raul Hernandez, 27, died on
Sept. 6, 2013, several days after
diving in to help save his younger brother who was overcome by
electrical shock when the pool lights came on at the Hilton
Westchase hotel in Houston. Also
at the pool were the victim's mother, his girlfriend and her young
daughter.
The family members will be paid a settlement by the hotel's
owner and operator in addition to the previous settlement paid by
the company whose electricians were charged with criminally
negligent homicide.
"Our lives were forever changed that day at the Hilton hotel.
Our hope is that the lessons learned from this tragedy will mean
that companies responsible for swimming pools will not cut corners
and risk the lives of their guests," said family spokesman
Carlos Hernandez Jr. "This was a
senseless loss that easily could have been prevented."
The settlement was finalized April
27 in Harris County
District Court and is being paid by the hotel operator, a division
of Arlington, Virginia-based
Interstate Hotels and Resorts Inc., a leading global hotel
management company; and the owner of the Hilton Westchase hotel, a
subsidiary of Boston-based venture
capital firm Wheelock Street Capital. A court hearing was held to
ensure the settlement was fair to the minors in the case, Raul's
11-year-old brother and the young daughter of his girlfriend
Lorena Mendoza.
Besides the two children, other settlement recipients are Raul's
mother, Maria Isabel Duran, who also
suffered electrical shock and had to be revived; his brother
Carlos Hernandez Jr., as the
representative of Raul's estate; and Ms. Mendoza. The settlement's
financial details are confidential, but family
attorney Stephen Loftin of Hicks Thomas LLP said they were
pleased with the result.
"We are very pleased with the settlement," said Mr. Loftin, "but
money will not bring Raul back. The family hopes that the notoriety
of this case will bring attention to pool electrical safety and
help prevent this from happening to another family in the
future."
Founded in 1997, Hicks Thomas, LLP, is a premier litigation firm
representing plaintiffs and defendants across the nation. With
offices in Houston and
Sacramento, California, the firm
provides in-depth experience in cases involving oil and gas,
environmental, complex commercial, toxic tort, products liability,
corporate governance, securities, banking, insurance coverage,
transportation, trade secrets and business litigation. Visit the
firm at http://www.hicks-thomas.com.
To view the original version on PR Newswire,
visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/hicks-thomas-llp---houston-area-family-receives-settlement-in-hotel-pool-electrocution-300072862.html
SOURCE Hicks Thomas, LLP