It claims three other people have died from similar incidents involving gates in the last 32 years. 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. One, Saving Innocence, depicted teenage girls from urban areas helping teen moms in rural communities go back to school. 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. "For want of an $8 basic padlock, our world lost an extraordinary warrior for good," the claim continues. "Emergency response personnel from the National Park Service, Grand County Sheriffs Office, Grand County EMS, Moab City Police Department, Utah Highway Patrol and Moab Valley Fire Department responded to the scene to provide assistance. Twitter / CBS/AP. A spokeswoman said the single vehicle accident happened June 13 on the entrance road of Arches National Park, near the Visitor's Center, and that the entrance was shut down for several hours. The trial over a wrong death lawsuit of a Ugandan activist has begun. SALT LAKE CITY -- 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. Denver7's Lance Hernandez reports. 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. 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 By SAM METZ Associated Press January 31, 2023, 11:37 AM 2:19 National headlines from ABC News Catch up on the developing stories making headlines. "This act of selflessness went viral throughout Uganda, and she was featured in numerous magazines and news publications. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. Trying To Figure Out How To Move Forward: Widower Of Denver Woman Decapitated By Gate At Arches National Park Struggles After Trauma. The couple hiked to Delicate Arch and ate lunch in the Windows area before starting their drive out of the park. She was always willing to help, he said. The amount was far less than the $140 million Nakajjigos family originally sought. Liability, if any, would have to be based on proof of willful wanton misconduct, sometimes referred to as gross negligence.. The couple had been married about three months. The suit does not specify the amount the plaintiffs are seeking, though it accuses park staff of negligence. The United Nations Population Fund awarded her a Woman Achiever Award," the claim states. She described Nakajjigo as a prominent women's rights activist who 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. Michaud hopes he and Nakajjigos family can continue her legacy. The young activist participated in programs at Drexel University in Philadelphia as a Mandela Washington Fellow and at the Watson Institute in Boulder, Colorado as a Luff Peace Fellow, Moab Sun News said. Instead, the Utah park became the site of a horrific accident that killed her. She founded the Princess Diana Health Center, Moab Sun News continued. The gruesome nature of Nakajjigos death and the fact that she was a renowned Ugandan womens rights activist drew widespread attention to the case. The same year, Nakajjigo was named Ugandas ambassador for women and girls. Its still hard to concentrate, but I try to.. Nakajjigo's younger brother John, who traveled from Uganda to the U.S. to be at the trial, told KUTV that life without his sister has been extremely tough, but he is grateful for the opportunity to be at the trial and also meet Nakajjigo's husband for the first time. "I went from the best time of my life to the worst, in one second," he said. In court, Michaud described his relationship with Nakajjigo as the best time of his life., It feels lonely, and thats hard. As the couple was leaving the park, gusts of wind swung the gate around rapidly, enough to slice through the passenger side door of the couples car, decapitating Nakajjigo as her husband sat feet away in the drivers seat. 2022 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. Throughout the trial, attorneys debated estimates of Nakajjigos earnings potential. The claim she served is legally required before a lawsuit can be filed in court. First published on December 6, 2022 / 9:23 AM. "Nakajjigo, who went by Essie, was a women's rights champion in Uganda. Nakajjigo, 25, was a Ugandan human rights activist and moved to Colorado in 2019 to attend the Watson Institute in Boulder. Michaud, in February, told FOX 13 about the trip to the park. In their legal complaint, Michaud and Nakajjigos parents said the National Park Service was negligent for not maintaining the gate. 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. 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. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. For this work, the United Nations Population Fund gave her the Woman Achiever Award. Ludovic said he knows the suit won't bring his beloved wife back, but he wants to make sure the same type of tragic accident doesn't happen to anyone else. The family of a woman killed while visiting Arches National Park is hoping they can change the dangerous conditions that lead to her death and continue the philanthropy she inspired around the globe. Most Facebook users can now claim settlement money. What awaited them there was as awful as it was unthinkable. Opening statements previewed how the trial will hinge less on varying accounts of the accident and instead focus on Nakajiigo's biography and earning potential, which is used to calculate a portion of the damages. 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 head . The family is hoping to use money from the case to continue Essies projects. She really loved the Denver vibe and so do I. It's known for a series of sculpture-like fins and arches made of an orange sandstone that wind and water have eroded for centuries. It could have happened to anyone and if nothing is done, its going to happen again, he said. The plaintiffs contend multiple federal policies require such gates to be secured, but that the gate near the visitors center at Arches was unlatched for two weeks before it struck Nakajjigo. Send a note, share a story or upload a photo. Even simple tasks like cooking rice stored in a jar that Nakajjigo bought before her death feel paralyzing, he said. Businessman Awarded Sh126 Million for Land Forcefully Taken to Build SGR The Environment and Land Court has awarded over Sh126 Hotel Rwanda hero and government critic arrives in US Paul Rusesabagina, an outspoken critic of the Rwandan government, has arrived 2023 SAMRACK - Diaspora News & Updates; design by: Samrack. She was consistently working to improve the lives of women in Africa and beyond. The family Essie Nakajjigo, an activist who died in Arches National Park in 2020, is preparing to head to trial for a wrongful death lawsuit. According to NBC News, Nakajjigo was named as Ugandas ambassador for women and girls. I had a ton of flashbacks. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. But where they disagree, he said, is how much money Nakajjigo raised in her lifetime and how much education she completed. The Dignity Memorial brand name is used to identify a network of licensed funeral, cremation and cemetery providers that include affiliates of Service Corporation International, 1929 Allen Parkway, Houston, Texas. Its a fear of erasing her, I guess, when you use something that she bought or that she ate or that we did together.. DENVER -- Ludovic Michaud has notified the Department of the Interior and the National Park Service that he intends to file a wrongful death lawsuit because of a crash at the entrance to Arches National Park that claimed the life of his beloved wife, Esther Nakajjigo. She was very strong personality, really funny, really smart, said Ludovic Michaud, Essie Nakajjigos husband. Nakajjigo, who went by Essie, was a womens rights champion in Uganda. 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. 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Esther Nakajjigo was killed at Utah's Arches National Park when a metal pipe from a swinging gate decapitated her. What happens to First Republic Bank's stock and deposits now? Copyright 2020 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. Nakajjigo, who was 25 at the time, was needlessly decapitated, according to a wrongful death administrative claim obtained by NBC News. The organization was tailored toward reducing the risk of teenage pregnancy among teens. What awaited them there was as awful as it was unthinkable. But on June 13, she and her husband needed a break from quarantine and headed toward Arches National Park in Utah. But when she met Michaud in June 2019 in Aurora, Colorado, through a dating app, he just saw her as a smart person who loved to laugh. Esther Nakajjigo, a native of Uganda, accomplished more at age 25 than most do in a lifetime. Denver7's Lance Hernandez reports. 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. Esther Nakajjigo died on June 13 after a metal gate swung into a car she and her husband were in and sliced het head off Credit: Handout. At age 17, Nakajjigo was recognized by the United Nations for her work for women, according to the claim. 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. There is a lot of small things I miss.. 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. Liability is the exception rather than the rule, Kozlowski said. "It could have happened to the people in front of us, or behind us," he said. Copyright 2021 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. It argues that park employees only needed to install the gate with an $8 padlock to prevent it from killing a young woman influencer destined to become our societys future Princess Diana, Philanthropist Melinda Gates, or Oprah Winfrey, NBC News said. "I turned my head and saw what I wish I didn't see.". The family of Esther Nakajjigo accused the National Park Service of negligence for not properly securing the metal gate that killed her. Heading out the door? One also took place on federal government property in the 80s, the outlet continued, when a U.S. Forest Service road closure gate impaled a California camper. Several dozen per day. "I don't want anyone or any other family to go through what we've been through," Michaud told CBS affiliate KUTV. The claim, served Oct. 22, is seeking more than $270 million in damages from the National Park Service. Esther Nakajjigo, age 25, of Denver, Colorado passed away on Saturday June 13, 2020. "Multiple fatalities" in massive pile-up on Illinois highway, Yellen warns U.S. could default on debt as early as June 1. After requesting that the family leave the courtroom, she recounted the moment Michaud realized his wife had been killed, when he inhaled the copper-tinged smell of blood, turned to figure out what it was and saw she was dead. As the couple was leaving the park, gusts of wind swung the gate around rapidly, enough to slice through the passenger side door of the couple's car, decapitating Nakajjigo as her husband sat feet away in the driver's seat. Esther Nakajjigo is a former Uganda activist who was decapitated this summer at the Utah Arches National Park. View of the Delicate Arch at sunset in the Arches National Park near Moab, Utah on April 21, 2018. IE 11 is not supported. Esther was born April 16, 1995. She served as an ambassador for women and girls in her native Uganda, and created a reality TV show to combat early pregnancy and forced marriage. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. The trial gave me and Essies family members an opportunity to tell Essies beautiful story, and it was so important to me to have the chance to stand up and speak for this amazing woman.. He said he didn't deny Nakajjigo was an extraordinary person, but argued it was difficult to speculate what kind of work she would have gone on to do. DENVER (CBS4) - The family of a woman killed while visiting Arches National Park is hoping they can change the dangerous conditions that lead to her death and continue the philanthropy she. "For want of an $8 basic padlock, our world lost an extraordinary warrior for good," the claim said. The metal pole forming the top of the gate pierced the passenger side of the car and struck Nakajjigo in the head and neck. Because neither the U.S. nor Nakajjigo's family disputed the facts of the case, the civil suit focused largely on the amount of damages merited. Jenkins awarded Michaud $9.5 million; Nakajjigo's mother, Christine Namagembe, $700,000; and her father, John Bosco Kateregga, $350,000. First published on November 12, 2020 / 2:34 PM. 'Shadow pandemic': Women, girls bear unequal share of Covid-19 burden, U.N. official warns, National parks begin to reopen across the country. Chang expects to file the lawsuit in about six months. 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. I dont know how I could stand to see another thing like that happen, and I just want to make sure we do whatever we can to avoid, to save another life.. The gate was owned by the United States government and anchored on government property., READ NEXT: Famous Rappers Brother Dies From Apparent Suicide, Esther Nakajjigo: Uganda Activist Decapitated in Utah National Park, Copyright 2023 Heavy, Inc. All rights reserved. Here's how. The family's lawsuit claims when the national parks reopened in April 2020 after being shuttered due to COVID-19, rangers at the national park in Utah didn't secure the gate in place, which in effect "turned a metal pipe into a spear that went straight through the side of a car, decapitating and killing Esther Nakajjigo.". Nakajjigo was a performer who used her celebrity to improve the status of women and girls in Uganda. Illinois highway pile-up causes multiple deaths, police say, Trump motion to declare mistrial in E. Jean Carroll lawsuit denied, Transgender Montana lawmaker Zooey Zephyr sues over censure, Debt ceiling standoff heats up over veterans' programs, U.S. tracking high-altitude balloon first spotted off Hawaii, Biden administration ending vaccine mandate for federal workers, travelers, The weirdest items passengers leave behind in Ubers. Michaud's wife, Esther Nakajjigo, 25, was a celebrated human rights activist in her home country of Uganda. For this work, the United Nations Population Fund gave her the Woman Achiever Award. In June, Nakajjigo was visiting the park with her new husband, Ludovic Michaud, Moab Sun News reported. 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 the gates at the entrances and exits to the parks, leading to Nakajjigo's death.
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