Dallas Jury Awards $25 Million After NFL Player Is Killed in Teammate's DUI Crash

In the early hours of December 8, 2012, Josh Brent, a defensive tackle for the Dallas Cowboys, got behind the wheel of a Mercedes after an evening at Beamers nightclub in Irving, Texas. His blood-alcohol level was later measured at 0.18 percent, more than twice the legal limit. Brent lost control of the vehicle at roughly 110 miles per hour in a 45 mph zone. The car flipped. His passenger, practice-squad receiver Jerry Brown Jr., was killed at the scene.

Brent was convicted of intoxication manslaughter in 2014 and received a ten-year probated sentence. That criminal judgment, however, left unresolved a central question: who else bore responsibility for putting an intoxicated driver on the road? Stacey Jackson, Jerry Brown's mother, pursued that question in civil court.

Charla Aldous of Aldous Law represented Jackson at trial in December 2018. The theory of liability ran on two tracks. First, Brent himself was reckless. Second, Beamers bore independent responsibility under Texas dram-shop law, which holds a licensed alcohol provider liable when it continues serving a patron who is obviously intoxicated and who then causes injury or death. The evidence showed Brent and Brown had been at the club for several hours and that Brent was visibly intoxicated before leaving.

The jury deliberated and returned a verdict of $25 million. It apportioned fault at 48 percent to Brent, 48 percent to Beamers, and 4 percent to Brown. The equal split between the driver and the bar reflected the jury's conclusion that the nightclub's decision to keep serving Brent contributed as directly to the crash as Brent's own conduct. The lawsuit had initially sought up to $95 million, largely targeting the bar.

Brent did not attend the trial but submitted testimony acknowledging his responsibility. After the verdict, Aldous stated publicly that the award should prompt bars across Texas to take seriously their obligation to stop serving patrons who are already intoxicated. No remittitur or appellate reduction of the award has been reported in available sources.