The couple was leaving a park parking lot to get ice cream when a metal traffic control gate swung into the road, piercing the passenger side of the couples rental car and severing Nakajjigos head. The ongoing trial will largely focus on determining the damages that may go to her family and Michaud. Esther Nakajjigo (credit: Ludovic Michaud). Nelson, the governments attorney, has said an appropriate award would be $3.5million (2.9m). The lawsuit alleges that a simple $8 padlock could have prevented the gate from swinging, and claims the park violated regulations. Nakajjigo was not sure where she wanted to work whether it was in the U.S., back in Uganda or elsewhere but Michaud was willing to follow her wherever she could continue to make the most impact. Vous pouvez modifier vos choix tout moment en cliquant sur le lien Tableau de bord sur la vie prive prsent sur nos sites et dans nos applications. The same year, Nakajjigo was named Ugandas ambassador for women and girls. "On behalf of the United States, we again extend our condolences to Ms. Nakajjigos friends, family and beloved community. Later, his chin trembled as Nelson delivered the government's apology. 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. FILE - Delicate Arch is seen at Arches National Park on April 25, 2021, near Moab, Utah. Courtesy of. Her husband, Michaud, is seeking $240 million in damages from the National Park Service, while Nakajjigo's family is seeking $30 million. Ugandan newlywed Esther Nakajjigo, 25, was visiting Arches National Park in Utah in June 2020 when she was struck and killed by a metal pole attached to a traffic control gate. Nous, Yahoo, faisons partie de la famille de marques Yahoo. Denver7's Lance Hernandez reports. Newlyweds Esther "Essie" Nakajjigo, 25, and Ludovic "Ludo" Michaud, 26, were driving to get ice cream during a camping trip June 13 when a metal gate blew closed in strong winds and sliced . 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 . Esther Nakajjigo and her husband were visiting the regions national parks months after their wedding. 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. 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. Ms Nakajjigo met Mr Michaud after she relocated to the US, where she was awarded the Luff Peace Fellowship by the University of Boulder in Colorado. During the trials opening statements in December, Nakajjigo was described as a pearl beyond price with limitless potential, the Salt Lake Tribune reported. Theres a newsletter that went out to all the parks and the National Park Service that warned of this decades ago. Mail that Nakajjigo has continued to receive after her death has been a stark reminder of the life they should still be enjoying together. The federal trial began Monday in Utah, where the husband and family of Nakajjigo are seeking $140 million in damages from the U.S. government, arguing in a complaint that the national park was negligent and failed to properly maintain the gate. 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. 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. Michaud and his in-laws are asking a federal judge for $140 million. Michaud was the last plaintiff witness in the civil trial over the June 13, 2020, death of his wife, Esther Nakajjigo. The closing arguments came after five days of trial that included testimony from Nakajjigo's family, friends and mentors, as well as from bystanders who witnessed the accident. Si vous souhaitez personnaliser vos choix, cliquez sur Grer les paramtres de confidentialit. I was a couple of inches from dying, but I didnt, and right now I have a mission: Its to make sure what shes done continues.. Attorney Randi McGinn, representing Nakajjigos family, on Monday asked the family to leave when he described the death in gruesome detail. I really wanted to show her Arches, he told Fox 13. We dont know with any level of certainty what her plans were, Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Nelson said. They argued that had employees installed the gate properly and secured it with an $8 padlock, Nakajjigos death could have been prevented, This decision serves as a reminder of the importance of proper maintenance and safety measures in our national parks, so as to prevent similar incidents from happening in the future, Michaud said in, on Monday. Esther Nakajjigo and Ludovic Michaud at Arches National Park in eastern Utah. At just 17, using her college tuition money, she created a nonprofit community health center. Nothing we can say makes up for your loss. Something went wrong, please try again later. During the trials opening statements in December, Nakajjigo was described as a pearl beyond price with limitless potential. Sign up today. Nakajjigo, who was 25, lived with her husband in Denver, where she moved to attend a leadership course on a full scholarship. minutes. They had wanted three children. Nakajjigos remains were flown back to Uganda in August. Matthew McConaugheys wife was among the passengers on board a Lufthansa flight struck by severe turbulence and has described the chaos. 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. It's really a full-time job," he said. Esther Nakajjigo was decapitated at Arches National Park in Utah after wind swung an untethered metal gate into her car, killing her immediately as her husband sat in the seat next to her. Diana Dasrath is entertainment producer and senior reporter for NBC News covering all platforms. 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. . 2023 EHM Productions, Inc. All rights reserved. Its still hard to concentrate, but I try to.. He spoke, too, about the difficulty of sending his wife's body to Uganda in a cardboard box; how only her hands, one of them broken, were visible at her funeral; and how he moved to a new apartment after the accident, unable to bear the reminders of the life he'd shared with Nakajjigo. IE 11 is not supported. Credit: AP FILE - Delicate. deductible, Report a missed paper by emailingsubscribe@sltrib.comor calling801-237-2900, For e-edition questions or comments, contact customer support801-237-2900or emailsubscribe@sltrib.com. In the opening statements of the wrongful death lawsuit, attorneys representing Michaud and Nakajjigos family recounted the moment Michaud realised his wife had been killed. 72 Join Insider . 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 and her husband Ludovic Michaud were vacationing in eastern Utah, visiting the region's national parks months after their wedding. Throughout the trial, attorneys debated estimates of Nakajjigos earnings potential. At age 17, she used her college tuition money to start a nonprofit community health center, which provided free reproductive health services to young women and girls. Attorneys representing Michaud and Nakajjigos parents asked for $140 million in damages, while the government said an appropriate award would be roughly $3.5 million. The gate had been unsecured for the previous two weeks, despite national park requirements that prohibit gates from swinging, according to the complaint filed in U.S. District Court. 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. Esther Nakajjigo and Ludovic Michaud at Arches National Park in eastern Utah in the hours before a gate swung into the couple's car, killing Nakajjigo. On Monday, a federal judge ruled Ludovic Michaud, the husband of Esther Nakajjigo, will receive $9.5 million, while Nakajjigo's mother and father were awarded $700,000 and $350,000, respectively, per the Salt Lake Tribune. Esther Nakajjigo had been visiting Utah's Arches National Park when she was killed by a gate caught in the wind. Disputing the family's claims the victim was on track to become the CEO of a non-profit who could eventually have netted an annual income in the hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars. Additionally, Berndt said the plaintiffs can only speculate on what Nakajjigo might have done had she lived, and the court can't ignore that "in favor of dreams and potential.". According to the official statement from Wilson Jaga, the communications head for the office of the Ugandan Women and Girls, Nakajjigo was hit by a metallic gate of the Arches National Park due. "For want of an $8.00 basic padlock, our world lost an extraordinary warrior for good; a young woman influencer who was destined to become our society's future Princess Diana, Philanthropist Melinda Gates or Oprah Winfrey," read the initial claim from Nakajjigo's husband and family. "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. Nakajjigo was killed instantly. Esther Nakajjigo, a 25-year-old Ugandan human rights activist, was killed in a horrific accident at Arches National Park on June 13, 2020. The family of Ugandan philanthropist Esther Nakajjigo, who was decapitated by a traffic gate in front of her husband in Arches National Park in Utah, has been awarded $10.5m. He no longer has a TV in his apartment because the sight of any blood is triggering, he said. The smaller projection takes into account only the averages of a statistical black woman, she said; while the higher projections factor in that Nakajjigo was a real, extraordinary person. The family of Esther Nakajjigo accused the National Park Service of negligence for not properly securing the metal gate that killed her. One time it was the delivery of her Social Security card; another time, an update on her immigration status. At age 17, she used her college tuition money to start a nonprofit community health center, which provided free reproductive health services to young women and girls. Michaud, Nakajjigo's husband, spoke about the intense trauma he's endured since his wife's death, including sleeplessness, nightmares and suicidal ideation. Continuing her work brings him hope; he's already started a nonprofit in her name, the Esther Nakajjigo Foundation. Its known for a series of sculpture-like fins and arches made of an orange sandstone that wind and water have eroded for centuries. The gate narrowly avoided Michaud, who was left covered head to toe in his wife's blood. A family is getting $10 million in the wrongful death of Ugandan human rights activist Esther Nakajjigo, who was decapitated by a swinging metal gate in Arches National Park, Utah. But now, Michaud said, he returns to an apartment that doesn't feel like a home. 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. Nakajjigo, who was 25, lived with her. Because neither the U.S. nor Nakajjigos family disputed the facts of the case, the civil suit focused largely on the amount of damages merited. A lot of things remind me of her, Michaud told the Salt Lake Tribune. sltrib.com 1996-2023 The Salt Lake Tribune. The claim describes Nakajjigos final moments in graphic detail and says the end of the lance-like gate pierced the side of their car and penetrated it like a hot knife through butter.. On June 13, she was needlessly decapitated by a metal gate that swung into the couples car as they were exiting the Arches parking lot on their way to go get ice cream, according to a wrongful death administrative claim exclusively obtained by NBC News. What happened during the 2023 Utah Legislature. The large monetary damages being sought on behalf of Michaud and Nakajjigos parents are a reflection of the suffering they have gone through plus the loss of Nakajjigos future income and fundraising abilities, Chang said. sltrib.com 1996-2023 The Salt Lake Tribune. Nakajjigo, who was 25, lived with her. Nationwide News Pty Ltd 2023. The family of a human rights activist killed in a freak accident at Utah's Arches State Park won $10.5 million in damages from the U.S. government. A woman who had married her husband only three months ago has died after a horror crash saw a car park gate swing through the couple's car and cut off her head. 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. By age 25, when she died, she had accomplished more than most people do in an entire lifetime and had much more to do with her life, court documents state. A federal judge ruled Monday that the U.S. will shell out more than $10 million in damages to the family of Esther Nakajjigo after she was killed in an accident at a Utah national park in. The United Nations Population Fund awarded her a Woman Achiever Award," the claim states. Seven people have been rushed to hospital after severe turbulence on a flight led to an emergency landing. Esther Nakajjigo (credit: Ludovic Michaud) Nakajjigo, 25, was a Ugandan human rights activist and moved to Colorado in 2019 to attend the Watson Institute in Boulder. Nakajjigo was decapitated after wind swung an untethered metal gate into her car, killing her immediately as her husband sat in the seat next to her.
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