2023 EHM Productions, Inc. All rights reserved. The. Family sues after newlywed is killed by gate at Arches park Nakajjigo, who was 25, lived with her. The French national said he and his wife, who had only been married for three months and lived in Denver, Colorado, had been on a hike and had lunch before driving out of the park. She was always willing to help, he said. She rose from poverty to become the host of a solutions-oriented reality television series in Uganda focused on empowering women on issues such as education and healthcare, and had successfully raised funds to build health care facilities in her hometown. National Park Service faces $270M wrongful death claim - USA TODAY Esther Nakajjigo was killed at Arches National Park in 2020. According to NBC, the claim was served Oct. 22, and alleges that if park employees had properly installed the gate to not swing into oncoming traffic or placed an $8 padlock on the gate to secure it from moving in the breeze, the world would not have lost a young woman influencer destined to become our societys future Princess Diana, Philanthropist Melinda Gates, or Oprah Winfrey.. Berndt said her team in no way believes Nakajjigo was an average person, and that using reliable data to estimate her lost earnings isn't a value judgment of Nakajjigo. Esther Nakajjigo was killed at Arches National Park in 2020. SALT LAKE CITY (AP) The United States will pay family members of a Ugandan human rights activist killed in an accident at Arches National Park more than $10 million in damages, a federal judge ruled Monday. Ugandan activist's family awarded $10.5M for Utah park death Instead, "the end of the lance-like gate pierced the side of their car and penetrated it like a hot knife through butter." Family of Ugandan activist who was decapitated at UT national park gets Ugandan activist's family awarded $10.5M for Utah park death Ludovic Michaud and his new wife, Esther Nakajjigo, were driving around Arches National Park on a windy spring day in 2020 when a metal gate whipped around, sliced through the passenger door of. The United States will pay more than $10 million in damages over the death of Esther Nakajjigo, a prominent Ugandan human rights activist killed in Arches National Park in 2020. Ludovic Michaud, the husband of late human rights activist Esther Nakajjigo, has filed a $270 million wrongful death administrative claim against the National Park Service, according to a report by NBC News, following a June accident at Arches National Park near Moab. Yet park employees could have done a lot, the claim alleges, including taking note during inspections of the gate that it posed a danger and putting an inexpensive padlock on it. This photo was taken in the hours before a gate swung into the couple's car, killing Nakajjigo. The ongoing trial will largely focus on determining the damages that may go to her family and Michaud. Nakajjigo married Denver man Ludovic Michaud in March 2020. Accident claims Ugandan activist Nakajjigo in US - New Vision In 2020, Ludovic Michaud was driving with his 25-year-old wife Esther Nakajjigo out of Utah's Arches National Park to get ice cream on June 13 when a metal gate swung into the car and cut her. The family says under federal park rules, similar gates should be secured, but the gate that struck Ms Nakajjigo had been unlatched for weeks, Fox 13 reports. Nakajjigo had been celebrated for using money earmarked for her college tuition to instead open a nonprofit community health center in Uganda at age 17. Ugandan activist's family awarded $10.5M for Utah park death What if he hadn't suggested the trip. minutes. Denver Woman Decapitated By Gate: Family Files $270M - CBS News Picture: Handout The family of a women's rights activist who was decapitated in an accident on a trip with her new husband has sued the US government agency responsible for the park where she died. Drenched in his wifes blood, Michaud instinctively jumped out of the slowly moving car after impact, then got back in to put it in park. Michaud, Nakajjigo's husband, spoke about the intense trauma he's endured since his wife's death, including sleeplessness, nightmares and suicidal ideation. Ugandan activist's family awarded $10.5 million for Utah death - Los All times AEDT (GMT +11). The newly married Michaud and Nakajjigo took a weekend trip to Arches National Park as a welcome break after months of lockdown amid the pandemic, court documents said. in the two-plus years since his wife, Esther "Essie" Nakajjigo, was hit and killed by an unsecured gate while the couple was leaving Arches National Park. They wed in a courthouse ceremony in March 2020, three months before her death, and had plans to have a big ceremony in Uganda when it was safe to travel again. The United States will pay more than $10 million in damages over the death of Esther Nakajjigo, a prominent Ugandan human rights activist killed in Arches National Park in 2020. Si vous ne souhaitez pas que nos partenaires et nousmmes utilisions des cookies et vos donnes personnelles pour ces motifs supplmentaires, cliquez sur Refuser tout. The tragic accident is now the subject of a wrongful death lawsuit Michaud and Nakajjigo's family are pursuing, in which they argue that the U.S. Park Service was negligent and did not maintain . They had wanted three children. According to Deborah Chang, the Los Angeles-based trial attorney representing Michaud, there was nothing he could have done to swerve out of the way of the gate that killed his wife and narrowly missed him. The gruesome nature of Nakajjigo's death and the fact that she was a renowned Ugandan women's rights activist drew widespread attention to the case. Ugandan activist's family awarded $10.5 million for Utah death - Los Angeles Times "We want you to know, on behalf of the United States, this accident and Essie's death was the responsibility of the United States," Nelson told Michaud. November 12, 2020 / 2:34 PM Nakajjigo, who was 25, lived with her husband in Denver, where she moved to attend a leadership course on a full scholarship. The women's rights activist from Uganda was 25 when, during a camping trip to Arches National Park in June 2020, she was beheaded by a metal gate that blew closed in strong winds and sliced through the side of the car she was riding in. One time it was the delivery of her Social Security card; another time, an update on her immigration status. Theres a newsletter that went out to all the parks and the National Park Service that warned of this decades ago. Ugandan activist's family awarded $10.5M for Utah park death Ludovic Michaud and his new wife, Esther Nakajjigo, were driving around Arches National Park on a windy spring day in 2020 when a metal gate whipped around, sliced through the passenger door of. As recreation areas in eastern Utah reopened that summer, Michaud was excited to take his new wife to Arches National Park, and the two drove there in June. At age 17, Nakajjigo was recognized by the United Nations for her work for women, according to the claim. Seven people have been rushed to hospital after severe turbulence on a flight led to an emergency landing. He smiled at some points as he shared photos and memories of happier times affectionate birthday cards, silly nicknames, meals cooked together, the rose petals Nakajjigo arranged into the shape of a heart with an "I" and a "U" on either side. She met Michaud on Tinder in 2019, when she was attending a leadership program in Boulder, Colorado. Esther Nakajjigo was driving with her newlywed husband on their honeymoon in Arches when an open road gate was swung by strong winds into their rental car. FILE - Delicate Arch is seen at Arches National Park on April 25, 2021, near Moab, Utah. The end of that trial came Monday, but a verdict is still pending. SALT LAKE CITY The family of human rights activist Esther Nakajjigo, who was decapitated in an accident in Arches National Park, has sued the National Park Service. They said you have to lock it or its going to impale a car, so everyone knows, Chang said. One, Saving Innocence, depicted teenage girls from urban areas helping teen moms in rural communities go back to school. US attorneys have said this claim was too speculative to be used as a basis for damages. FILE - Delicate Arch is seen at Arches National Park on April 25, 2021, near Moab, Utah. Nakajjigo donated her own college fund to start a hospital, Berndt said; she raised money for charities and never took a salary. Trial begins for woman decapitated at Arches National Park Esther Family of Ugandan Awarded $10.5M for Utah Park Death The family of a womens rights activist who was decapitated in an accident on a trip with her new husband has sued the US government agency responsible for the park where she died. Our mission is to make sure this doesnt happen again, Michaud said. Esther Nakajjigo was a prominent Ugandan human rights activist who was killed in Utah's Arches National Park in 2020. Michaud said he and Nakajjigo were two weeks shy of closing on a condo when the accident occurred, with hopes of owning a house down the road. She was named Ugandas ambassador for women and girls. One of his regrets is not saying, "I love you," one more time. Ugandan activist's family awarded $10.5M for Utah park death Lorsque vous utilisez nos sites et applications, nous utilisons des, authentifier les utilisateurs, appliquer des mesures de scurit, empcher les spams et les abus; et. The United States will pay more than $10 million in damages over the death of Esther Nakajjigo, a prominent Ugandan human rights activist killed in Arches National Park in 2020. Nakajjigo's family sued the government for the largest federal award ever asked for in both state and national history, according to plaintiffs' attorney Randi McGinn, seeking $140 million in damages. Activist Esther Nakajjigo's family beg Ugandan government to return The family of a Ugandan young girl child activist, Esther Nakajjigo who died in the United States of America (USA) have asked government to help them repatriate her body, to be accorded a decent burial. . Opening arguments began Monday in Salt Lake City in a wrongful death lawsuit brought by the family of a 25-year-old women's rights activist from Uganda who was killed by a wind-blown gate during a camping trip to Arches National Park in June 2020.