Politics & Government

Chimp Attack Victim: Let Me Sue State for $150 Million

Carla Nash and her attorney make their case to a legislative committee, claiming that the DEEP knew the chimp was a threat to public safety.

A woman who was nearly killed by a chimpanzee at her friend's Stamford home in 2009 is asking Connecticut legislators for permission to sue the state for $150 million.

Carla Nash, whose face and hands were ripped off by Travis the chimp, made her case Friday before a legislative committee at the state capitol. Nash had to go that route since state Claims Commissioner J. Paul Vance Jr. denied her request in June to waive Connecticut's sovereign immunity from lawsuits


According to a report on Yahoo News, Nash's attorney, Charles Willinger of Bridgeport, told committee members:

"This case is about the systemic, institutional gross negligence of the Department of Energy and Environment Protection, from the commissioner all the way down to its police force. What we're asking for is to let a court of law decide whether the DEEP was negligent."

Willinger went on to cite a report from a DEEP biologist — written four months before Travis attacked Nash and was subsequently shot by a Stamford police officer — that she was concerned the private ownership of the chimp was a threat to public safety.

"The animal has reached adult maturity, is very large and tremendously strong. I am concerned that if he feels threatened or if someone enters his territory, he could seriously hurt someone," the memo reportedly states, according to the Yahoo report.

Nash was awarded $4 million in a settlement with the estate of the chimp's owner, the late Sandra Herold. Willinger has said those funds are inadequate to meet Nash's ongoing medical bills. The 60-year-old has undergone several surgeries, including one of the world's first successful full face transplants, and lives at a convalescent facility in the Boston area. 

While state Attorney General George Jepsen has said he is sympathetic to Nash's situation, he said the law does not support her claim. According to the Yahoo report, Jepsen said that allowing Nash to sue would "open the floodgates for unlimited lawsuits and liability that would bankrupt the state."

The judiciary committee has until April 2 to decide whether it will send Nash's request for consideration by the full General Assembly or deny it outright.

What do you think the state should do? 


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