If approved by the Lubbock City Council on Thursday, January 14, the city will settle out-of-court with the family of Morgan Lee for $250,000.
Lee was an incoming freshman student at Texas Tech when, in August of 2014, her car collided with a police unit driven by Officer Cody Kidd near North Loop 289 and Clovis Road.
In the days after the crash Kidd’s attorney said, “The evidence shows that he [Kidd] was not at fault for the collision and that this is in fact a tragic accident.”
Lee’s family saw things differently; the original lawsuit said Kidd was driving fast to a police call with no red lights or sirens. The lawsuit accused Kidd of disregarding public safety and driving with negligence.
In the settlement agreement, the City of Lubbock admitted to no wrongdoing and “… is willing to settle all claims to avoid the inconvenience, distractions, uncertainties and expenses attendant to litigation and trial…”
The agreement also said, “The parties agree that no portion of the settlement monies are being paid for punitive or exemplary damages…”
All money in the settlement will be defined as “consideration” for personal injuries or sickness as defined in the Internal Revenue Code.
