University Of Oregon Distance Runner Suing Men She Says Injured Her With Rock Through Windshield
EUGENE, Ore. (AP) - A University of Oregon distance runner was hospitalized for two days when a rock thrown from a freeway overpass crashed through her windshield and injured her. Now, she's suing two men she says are responsible.
The Eugene Register-Guard reports (http://bit.ly/127gtZ4 ) that Molly Grabill filed the $950,000 lawsuit last week against Matthew McKinney and Hayden Tabor after the November 2012 incident.
Tabor was driving while McKinney threw the rock, Grabill's lawsuit says.
Grabill's attorney, Scott Lucas of Eugene, said he initially submitted a damage claim to Tabor's auto insurer, but that the coverage isn't enough to compensate Grabill for her injuries.
The lawsuit comes two years to the day from the incident. Under Oregon law, a personal-injury lawsuit must be filed within two years from the date of an injury.
McKinney was arrested in February 2013 and charged with assault and reckless endangerment, but Douglas County prosecutors have not secured an indictment against him.
Deputy District Attorney Shannon Sullivan said Friday that the matter remains open and that she expects the criminal case against McKinney will proceed after "further investigation" is completed.
Grabill spent months in recovery after suffering a broken jaw, fractured and lost teeth and a head injury. Grabill returned in fall 2013 to run for the Oregon Ducks. She completed her junior season last week with a 77th-place finish in the 6,000-meter race at the NCAA women's cross country championship meet.
Neither Tabor nor McKinney, who is now 21, could be reached for comment.
Copyright 2014 The Associated Press.
