Children killed at mini-golf course when driver veered off road in Florida, lawsuit says
This past Christmas was the third one that two parents spent without their young son and daughter after a family vacation to Panama City, Florida, ended with their deaths.
Matt and Lauren Kirchgessner say the life-altering deaths of their children Addie, 6, and Baylor, 4, on Dec. 4, 2020, was fully preventable. Now they’re suing those they say are responsible.
The parents were playing mini-golf that day with Addie and Baylor when a man driving a truck suddenly veered off the nearby highway, burst through the fence of Coconut Creek Family Fun Park and struck the two children, according to their lawsuit filed Feb. 7.
Baylor was immediately killed and Addie died on the way to the hospital, the complaint says.
Charges weren’t pressed against the man driving the truck, Scott Donaldson, after it was determined he had a seizure during the crash, according to a news release from Morgan & Morgan law firm. Attorneys Jack T. Cook, Clay Townsend and Rebecca Williamson from the firm are representing the Kirchgessners in the case.
Donaldson’s seizure on Dec. 4 was “predictable,” according to the Kirchgessners, who say decisions made by his doctor in Panama City make him responsible for Addie and Baylor’s deaths. The doctor is accused of allowing Donaldson to drive by signing off on his DMV forms, despite knowing his long history with seizures, as well as Donaldson’s struggles with alcohol.
The Kirchgessners are suing Donaldson’s doctor, Dr. Tim Smith. The lawsuit comes after Donaldson provided the family with his medical records showing how Smith enabled him to drive, according to the release.
Smith “could have prevented this life-shattering tragedy,” Lauren Kirchgessner said during a Feb. 8 news conference. “For decades, Mr. Smith enabled a pattern of illegal, irresponsible and immoral behavior that kept Scott Donaldson, his patient, behind the wheel.”
“No one has been held responsible for the deaths of our sweet Addie and Baylor,” the couple said in a statement. “We believe that multiple people could have prevented this tragedy, and we never want this to happen to another family.”
McClatchy News left a message with Smith’s Panama City office seeking comment on Feb. 9 and didn’t immediately receive a response.
The lawsuit also names Donaldson and the Panama City bar Donaldson owns, Billy’s Oyster Bar, as defendants. For years, the bar’s staff is accused of serving him excessive amounts of alcohol despite knowing “he had significant struggles with alcohol that resulted in multiple car crashes,” the release said.
McClatchy News contacted Billy’s Oyster Bar to reach Donaldson, as well as the bar, for comment on Feb. 9 and didn’t immediately receive a response.
According to the Kirchgessners’ attorneys, Donaldson is named as a defendant so the court can “grant additional release of his medical records.”
Doctor accused of negligence and medical malpractice
Prior to the crash that killed Addie and Baylor, Donaldson crashed his car on at least five separate occasions, Cook said during the news conference, citing the complaint.
In 2017, the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles requested information from Smith after receiving information that his patient, Donaldson, had an “ability/inability to drive safely due to” his documented history of having breakthrough seizures, the complaint says.
Smith wrote on the DMV form that Donaldson had an electrolyte imbalance at the time, according to the complaint.
On a separate form asking about Donaldson’s history of “ALL serious illnesses or physical impairments,” Smith left out Donaldson’s “clear and longstanding diagnoses for alcoholism, alcohol use, alcohol abuse, alcohol withdrawal, alcohol withdrawal seizures, and seizures secondary to alcohol use,” the complaint says.
On another section asking about Donaldson’s prescribed medications, Smith left this section blank with no mention of Donaldson taking anti-seizure and psychotropic medications, according to the complaint.
Two weeks after Smith filled out this form, Donaldson was admitted to a medical center for “seizures related to alcohol use,” the complaint says.
The risk of having a seizure is greater after having at least three alcoholic drinks, according to the Epilepsy Foundation.
The lawsuit accuses Smith of medical malpractice by not accurately documenting Donaldson’s medical history, not appropriately addressing his struggles with alcohol, not counseling Donaldson on the risks of driving and his history of sudden seizures, not counseling him on the risks of drinking and seizures, and more, the complaint shows.
It also faults Smith for not recommending Donaldson seek inpatient treatment for alcohol abuse, according to the complaint.
“The doctor needs to be held accountable for the decisions he made that we believe led to our children’s tragic death,” the Kirchgessners said during the news conference.
The lawsuit seeks to recover damages, including for the parents’ mental suffering over the loss of their children, medical and funeral expenses over Addie and Baylor’s deaths and more.
It comes as the Kirchgessners are now expecting a new baby, according to the news conference.
Cook said at the conference that the lawsuit aims to bring awareness about how tragedies such as the deaths of Addie and Baylor can be prevented.
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