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$1,000,000
- University of Pittsburgh Press
- Chapter
- Additional Information
12 $1,000,000 After my parents’ nearly fatal accident, I thought the one upside would be that they’d sue and become millionaires. They’d travel the world on a cruise, even if it meant that my mother was in a wheelchair now and my father needed extra heart medicine. They’d buy a cushy Cadillac and enjoy a sleek, comfortable ride each time they needed to stock up at the supermarket. All I want is a new stove, my mom said. And maybe a fridge with an icemaker. She knew not to dream big when it came to the legal system, my sister getting scarcely the price of a new Toyota after suffering a coma as a result of being hit by a drunk driver. But this was different, I thought—the drama of it all, the freakish horror. I took pictures of my mother’s scalp, the stitches and swollen hills, sure to convince any jury with a heart. We saved their bloody clothes in a trash bag in the garage, as instructed by the lawyer. As they recovered, my parents spent most of their waking hours on the phone with the hospital’s financial office, with Blue Cross. They kept a file cabinet full of claims and statements. Their friends kept egging them on—Don’t accept the first offer. Those insurance companies have deep pockets. In the meantime, a friend’s mother was killed as a result of a hit-and-run. He barely got enough money to pay off her debts. His lawyer told him it’s better, financially speaking, if such atrocities happen to young people—We can’t argue that your ninety-year-old mother lost out on any potential earnings, can we? People seemed to like to quote the case about the McDonald’s customer who was burned by hot coffee and sued for 2.9 million dollars. Surely your parents deserve at least that! But my father Googled the case, and the woman never got that money. After McDonald’s appealed the jury’s decision, the woman finally settled out of court. After two years, my parents’ lawyer said, I’m truly sorry—this is the best we can do. He quoted them a number, which covered their medical expenses, and left almost enough over for a Toyota. Unless you want to take this to trial—but I have to warn you, that could take up to five years. My dad was about to turn eighty. My parents live in Rhode Island. The courthouse was in Camden. My father got a new La-Z-Boy, and my mother her fridge. They enjoy iced tea on the porch, perusing travel guides—flipping through Sicily, Hong Kong, Greece. duhamelKtext.indd 12 12/1/08 11:15:17 AM ...