In settling a wrongful death lawsuit against Metro, the family of Beverly Kinney will not have to view video of a bus hitting and killing her in January 2024.
Sons Jeff and John Kinney believe that would have been part of a jury trial in a case against the owner of Cincinnati’s transit system, earlier scheduled for September.
“None of us have seen any of the video footage,” John Kinney told The Enquirer as the family discussed settling their June 2024 lawsuit. “That would have been very difficult to have to go through had it gone to jury.”
Metro owner Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority agreed to settle the Kinney suit for $10 million about six weeks ago, completing an agreement July 24.
“I think we’re walking away with something, at the end of the day, that is going to provide a legacy for my mom,” Jeff Kinney said. “We are going to actually be able to accomplish something that is going to create benefit for the people of Cincinnati.”
Family members will determine how to disburse funds
Working through the Greater Cincinnati Foundation, the Kinney family has established the Beverly Seeman Kinney Fund to spend the “vast majority” of the settlement payment, Kaela King, one of their attorneys, said at an Aug. 7 press conference. The family has not yet selected recipients but will direct funds to organizations that work for social justice, the environment, arts and culture, human services and education, King said.
John and Jeff Kinney said they will work with their mother’s husband, Ed Cloughessy, their spouses and their children to determine how to spend the funds.
Kinney, 87, was a retired schoolteacher who traveled widely and supported local arts groups as a patron and volunteer. She was returning from a regular afternoon walk near her Hyde Park condominium when a Metro bus hit and killed her at the corner of Dana Avenue and Duck Creek Road. Her estate sued Metro’s owner and driver Deon Willis in a suit that will be dismissed as part of the settlement.
“We weren’t anxious to drag this out, to go into a trial,” Jeff Kinney said. “Our goal, all along, was to bring about change in how Metro hires and retains drivers.”
Metro will add cameras, expand training under agreement
As part of the settlement, Metro agreed to:
“These changes will go a long way to making this community safer,” King said.
Under its insurance policy, Metro’s owner is responsible for up to $1 million of the payment to the Kinney estate, Metro said last week in a statement about the settlement.
The Greater Cincinnati Foundation will likely begin disbursing gifts from the Beverly Seeman Kinney Fund in about a year, family members said.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Kinney family to spend $10M settlement from Metro on arts, education, other causes
Reporting by Patricia Gallagher Newberry, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
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