Willacy County Jury Awards $2.53 Million to Family of Passenger Killed in 2009 Airplane Crash

Slack Davis Sanger attorneys Ladd Sanger and Paula Sweeney represent plaintiffs in winning jury verdict.

Case Details:
On Thursday, September 27, 2012, in the 197th Judicial District Court in Willacy County, a jury unanimously awarded $2.53 million in a case arising out of the crash of a Piper Twin Comanche on December 10, 2009, which killed passenger James Robinett. The plane was piloted by was Harvey Kinikin, Jr., who also died in the crash.

Mr. Robinett and Mr. Kinikin were the only two people on the plane, which went down in the Laguna Madre approximately 1.6 miles east of Charles R. Johnson airport in Port Mansfield, Texas. Mr. Kinikin had been on an instrument flight plan, but attempted a visual approach in fog and a low cloud ceiling.

Slack Davis Sanger attorneys Ladd Sanger and Paula Sweeney represented plaintiffs Sherry Robinett, wife of James Robinett, and Desiray Jynae Johnson and Devin James Robinett, the Robinetts’ grown children.

The defense was led by attorney Chris Kilgore of Carstens & Cahoon. Willacy County District Judge Migdalia Lopez presided over the case.

“We were glad we could show the jury what a wonderful father and husband James Robinett was to his family and the loss his death created,” said attorney Ladd Sanger.