Walmart: Tracy Morgan wasn't wearing seatbelt in deadly crash
Walmart says Tracy Morgan wasn't wearing his seatbelt during a New Jersey wreck that took the life of his good friend and mentor, 62-year-old comedian James McNair. The same accident, which took place in June, left the former "30 Rock" star with serious injuries.
Morgan had been traveling with McNair and several others inside a limo bus when it was struck from behind by Walmart driver Kevin Roper, 35, who had traveled more than 700 miles from his home in Georgia to a Walmart facility in Delaware before beginning his shift.
In legal documents filed in a New Jersey court Monday and obtained by the Hollywood Reporter, Walmart says that Morgan's injuries "were caused, in whole or in part, by plaintiffs' failure to properly wear an appropriate available seatbelt restraint device."
Morgan, 45, was in critical condition for several days following the June 7 crash. He suffered a broken leg as well as broken ribs and spent over a month in rehabilitation facility after the accident.
The Associated Press says a lawyer representing Morgan and the other plaintiffs called Wal-Mart's contentions "surprising and appalling."
"It's disingenuous," attorney Benedict Morelli told AP. "It's not what they said they were going to do initially, which was take full responsibility. I'm very upset, not for myself but for the families I represent."
Morgan's attorneys filed a lawsuit against Walmart in July, claiming that the retail giant was criminally negligent in allowing Roper to operate a vehicle after already being on the road for hours. The suit seeks a jury trial and punitive and compensatory damages.
It alleges the driver fell asleep at the wheel. It asserts Walmart should have known he'd been awake for more than 24 hours before the crash and that his commute of 700 miles from his home in Georgia to work in Delaware was "unreasonable."
Roper is now facing death by auto and four counts of assault by auto criminal charges in New Jersey over the crash.
Tell us: Do you think Walmart has a point about Morgan's seatbelt? Do you think the argument will hold up in court?