$6 Million Verdict for Family of Woman Killed in Choctaw Casino Charter Bus Rollover

On a spring morning in April 2013, a chartered bus left the Dallas area headed for the Choctaw Casino and Resort in Durant, Oklahoma. Eleven miles into the trip, the driver lost control of the vehicle during an argument with the tour guide over whether to use a toll road. The bus rolled over. Two passengers, Paula Hahn, 69, and Alice Stanley, 83, were killed. Dozens more were injured.

The crash became a lawsuit over a straightforward question: when a tribal gaming operation contracts with an outside bus company to carry its customers, does it bear responsibility for those passengers' safety? The Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma argued it did not, pointing to the independent status of the charter operator and to federal motor-carrier licensing law. The Hahn family was represented by Spencer Browne of the Reyes Browne Reilley firm, which practices as Angel Reyes & Associates. Browne argued the tribe retained enough control over the transportation arrangement to be held vicariously liable under Texas common law.

The case went to trial in Dallas County in 2016. After several days of deliberations, the jury sided with the families. It awarded $6 million to the Hahn family and $4.9 million to the Stanley family, for a combined $10.9 million judgment. Because of prior settlements with the charter company and the driver, the amount entered against the Choctaw Nation alone came to $9.3 million.

The Choctaw Nation appealed, raising 15 separate issues, among them the argument that federal law preempted state tort claims against a tribal entity operating a licensed motor carrier. The Fifth Court of Appeals in Dallas rejected every argument. Justice Jason Boatright wrote the 25-page opinion affirming the judgment in May 2018, holding that state common-law vicarious liability principles applied and that the evidence was sufficient to support the jury's finding of tribal responsibility.

The $9.3 million judgment against the Choctaw Nation stood in full. No remittitur was ordered.