Jury gives mother, 2 girls $3.3 million in jet crash

— A federal jury awarded a Benton woman and her two children $3.3 million Friday for the injuries they suffered when American Airlines Flight 1420 crashed in Little Rock nearly two years ago.

The five-woman, two-man jury deliberated four hours before awarding Stephanie Manus $2 million for her physical and mental injuries, and $800,000 and $500,000 to her daughters, 6-year-old Lauren and 4-year-old Emily, respectively, for the mental trauma they endured. The jury awarded another $53,000 for future medical expenses.

The Manus family said the girls' money would go into trust funds until they are 18.

Stephanie Manus appeared to be worn from the week-long trial. She said she was "numb, and glad this part is over. I can only hope my children won't have to suffer any more than they already have."

The Manus girls were the only small children on board the fully loaded jet when it crash-landed off the end of Runway 4R as a storm was breaking, just before midnight on June 1, 1999. Eleven people died; scores were hurt.

Emily was the youngest on board, strapped into a child-safety seat, which her mother said saved her life.

The Manuses' case was the simplest of the four damage cases that have been tried before U.S. District Judge Henry Woods, but it was not without difficulty.

For example, the jury was asked to consider lost income for Manus, who is a stay-at-home mom. Manus testified that she had completed a course to be a travel agent, but her certificate was worthless now that she didn't trust airplanes. Before she had children, Manus was a cosmologist, but she testified that, with her damaged knee, she would not be able to stand long enough to cut hair.

Complicating matters, her lead attorney, Ted Boswell, became ill shortly after opening statements and was hospitalized throughout the trial. Woods said he considered granting a mistrial but decided Boswell's associates, Jim Jackson of Little Rock and Mike Slack of Austin, Texas, were competent to continue the case.

Jackson and Slack split the closing arguments, with Jackson thumping a copy of Humpty Dumpty as he told jurors that the damage to the Manus family was irreparable. Slack told the jurors that their verdict needed to stand the test of time, to provide money for the Manuses should their post-traumatic stress disorder worsen.

Glenn Jones, American Airlines' lead attorney for this trial, told the jurors that they should not speculate about what might happen in the future, but if they were tempted, they should remember that the outlook for the Manus family's full recovery was good.

Jackson said after the trial that he felt the verdict was fair. American Airlines does not permit its lawyers to comment publicly.

In a statement from the company's Fort Worth headquarters, spokesman John Hotard said, "We appreciate the jury's help in resolving this issue. It did its job in determining what it believed to a fair and reasonable award."

Three witnesses subpoenaed by American Airlines testified early Friday. Two psychologists said they thought Lauren and Emily could make a good recovery and that the children, Lauren in particular, seemed to be afflicted with an anxiety disorder related to the crash.

Both said they leaned toward underdiagnosing children so as to not stick them with a "heavy" diagnosis that might hamper their recovery.

Lauren's kindergarten teacher, Terri Taylor, testified that Lauren became upset when the class sang a song about various modes of transportation, including a ditty about an airplane. She said Lauren was a bright child with above-average behavior.

The Manus trial was the first to include a married plaintiff and children. The damages awarded were less than juries granted in the three previous trials, amounts ranging from $11 million to $5.7 million.

More than 100 claims have been settled out of court.

American Airlines has admitted liability for the crash, which limits what a jury can hear. With liability not an issue, the jury can determine only fair and reasonable compensation for injuries, including pain and suffering, and mental trauma, if any.

In two trials this month, American Airlines' defense has worn two faces.

In Nancy Chu's trial, which ended April 18, American Airlines argued that Chu was still debilitated, that she had not recovered from her post-traumatic stress disorder because she had not had coordinated psychological and medical care.

In the Manus trial, the company argued that damages should be limited because Stephanie Manus had sought doctors, surgery for her knee and therapy for herself and her daughters; she was already getting better by the trial.

The Chu and Manus cases are the only two in which a survivor has reserved the right to seek punitive damages in a separate trial planned for later this year.

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