HOW Making a Video in a Wrongful Death Case Counts and WHY the Case Settled for $3.8 Million
by Geomatrix Productions in Legal Video
“She was the light and life of our family” said Jessica Thomas’ brother upon reflection of his twin sister.
A Life Cut Short:
Jessica Thomas was a single woman just one day shy of her 40th birthday when her life was tragically cut short in a serious motor vehicle crash with a tractor trailer that ran a red light. In an instant, the Thomas family had to make life and death decisions that led to the agonizing conclusion of taking Jessica off life support 2 weeks after the incident when doctors confirmed there was no brain activity or quality of life to be had.
Making The Case:
“According to attorney Kara M. Crismale, of Faulkner & Graves, “the defendants had no pressure to resolve the case during COVID as the trial kept being continued and there was no date scheduled for some time. In July 2020 we attempted a first mediation with Retired Judge Antonio Robaina of McEroy Deutsch that failed.”
“I wanted to show the impact Jessica had on the lives around her as a beautiful young woman with so much of her life ahead of her. She was not married and had no children, so I wanted a video of her parents, nephew and brothers to talk about how important she was to their lives. The video was very powerful and instrumental in getting the case resolved.”
The Case for Video:
Attorney Crismale called on Geomatrix’s team of experienced storytellers to capture the facts and the emotions of the case. “Geomatrix made the process easy for us, I just gave them the contact information and they ran with it,” said Attorney Crismale.
“Our direction from Kara was to keep it short and simple,” said Cathie Reese, President of Geomatrix Productions. “This was a tall order given the many facets of this very young woman’s life.” Cathie continued, “We always meet with family representatives in a call, zoom meeting, or in-person before any shooting is done to learn about the decedent, what made her special, and what her lost future would have looked like. The conversation always turns to the hole left in the fabric of an entire family.”
Case Closed:
Attorney Crismale commented that “whenever we do a video, we find that it helps the family to know that we are progressing with the case and going the extra mile to make their matter rise above any others.” She continued, “the family was happy to do the interviews, it gave them an opportunity to share their love for Jessica and to tell her story.”
That story was heard, and the case was settled for $3.8 million.
In Conclusion:
At Geomatrix, we are dedicated to the craft of narrative storytelling. We have honed that craft for more than 40 years in an effort to give our clients the tools they need to effectively reach their audience. Let us help you uncover the behind-the-scenes story of your clients that will make a difference in giving you the best outcomes.