EAST MANATEE, Fla. -- An employee of a Hess Express station who sold liquor to a teenager has prompted litigation against the oil company. But attorneys for the New York City-based retail marketer of 1,350 East Coast stores are expected to argue next month at a hearing in Bradenton, Fla., that the lawsuit should be dismissed, according to a report in The Sarasota Herald Tribune.
The suit stems from a beer sale in November 2004 in which a Hess station clerk sold a case of beer to a teenager who crashed his vehicle a short time later, killing himself and a passenger. The negligence complaint [image-nocss] against Hess said the crash, which occurred in East Manatee County, was a "reasonably foreseeable consequence" of selling alcohol to a teenager who is not allowed by law to buy it.
Authorities said the driver, Roy Pritchard, 17, of Myakka City, Fla., was intoxicated and speeding when he ran a red light and slammed his car into a tree. Pritchard and a passenger were killed. A third person was seriously injured but survived.
"But for the actions of Hess, we would not be here today," attorney Charles Gallagher III told the newspaper. Gallagher represents the teenage passenger killed in the accident.
Gallagher said the clerk, who reportedly personally knew Pritchard, and was a minor, had a chance to "stop the dominoes" from falling. Pritchard consumed the beer as he drove around Bradenton, the lawsuit said. Officials said they found the case of beer in the vehicle at the crash scene.
The Herald Tribune said court records show that Hess lawyers are challenging the lawsuit, saying that too much time has lapsed for the teen's family to pursue a wrongful death claim. The minor's father, William Childress, said more must be done to hold gas station clerks accountable for selling alcohol to minors. He said he wants to galvanize parents to generate awareness about the sale of alcohol to underage customers.
CSP Daily News could not reach Hess officials for comment about the litigation by presstime.
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