The Associated Press
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) - The city of Portland on Monday paid out more than $275,000 in connection with a drunken driving accident two years ago in which a police lieutenant rear-ended two vehicles after a police department Christmas party.
City officials said Kimberly McLellan, 26, of Gorham will get $245,000 for a back injury she suffered in the accident involving Lt. Ted Ross, who at the time was in charge of the department’s criminal investigation division.
The city also paid $26,000 to Kevin Hardy, whose vehicle was also rear-ended by Ross in the same crash, and $5,500 for damage to both vehicles. Since the city does not carry liability insurance, the settlement will be paid from a taxpayer-funded self-insurance fund.
The evening of the Dec. 17, 2002, crash, Ross attended a Christmas party hosted by Police Chief Michael Chitwood. He then went with colleagues to an Old Port bar for more drinks before he crashed a department-owned car on his way home.
In exchange for the payment, McLellan dropped a lawsuit which had not yet been filed, said her attorney, Daniel G. Lilley of Portland. The suit would have named the city, Chitwood and other unnamed officers as defendants, Lilley said, because the whole department shared blame for the crash.
“They had no policy about using city-owned vehicles while you are going to these Christmas parties,” Lilley said Monday. “There should have been some oversight of an employee who was drinking shots and beers with other officers. The last person Ross saw (before he drove home) was his supervisor.”
McLellan has two bulging discs in her back as a result of the accident, Lilley said. She also had to drop out of beautician school because she was advised by doctors that she would not have been able to stand long enough to do the job.
It was the seriousness of her injury and Ross’ undisputed responsibility for the crash which led the city to settle the case, said city attorney Gary Wood. The fact that Ross had been drinking at an officially sanctioned party in the presence of superior officers did not add to the size of the settlement, he said.
Since the accident, the city has introduced policies banning the use of city-owned vehicles by people under the influence of alcohol, said City Manager Joseph Gray. The city has also stopped sanctioning parties at which alcohol is served, or at which employees are allowed to bring alcohol. A holiday party was held Monday at City Hall and nothing stronger than coffee was served, Gray said.
Ross, who still works for the department, pleaded guilty to misdemeanor driving while under the influence of alcohol and was suspended from the department without pay for 90 days last year. When he returned to duty, he was transferred to the Portland International Jetport.
His attorney said that his loss of base pay combined with the lost opportunity to earn overtime when his case was pending cost Ross more than $60,000. He and his family were also publicly embarrassed, said lawyer Michael Cunniff.