Father Accidentally Kills Son, Now Being Sued

Next time you run over your own kid with your tow truck, be sure to do so in a manner which does not cause undue stress for the child's school principal.

A FORMER principal of Fairview Heights State School is suing parent Mark Talbot who accidentally ran over and killed his own son outside the school in 2004.

Mark Bolitho, 47, was principal of the primary school, located in Wilsonton, at the time of the tragedy and is claiming damages for personal injuries and loss allegedly caused by Mr Talbot’s negligence.

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Mr Talbot had driven his son Tommy and two daughters to school in his tow truck and the children were dropped outside the school at 8am.

However, Tommy approached the tow truck as his father was leaving and he was run over.

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The tragedy was deemed an accident and Mr Talbot was never charged by police.

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At the beginning of 2005, Mr Bolitho began experiencing symptoms such as holding himself accountable for the accident, poor sleep, increased irritability and anxiety, and social withdrawal.

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His solicitor Catherine Cheek from Clewett Lawyers said Mr Bolitho filed a damages claim against Mr Talbot and Suncorp Metway Insurance on August 31 last year.

“He went through a lot of distress. It was not an easy decision for him to make,” Mrs Cheek told The Chronicle.

The Supreme Court has extended the limitation period allowing Mr Bolitho’s damages claim to proceed, as it was filed after the three-year time limit had expired.

During the Supreme Court judgement on whether to extend the time period, which was delivered on November 5, Justice Anthe Philippides acknowledged the difficulty of the lawsuit.

“Litigation is extremely stressful, particularly for someone with a psychiatric illness,” Justice Philippides said.

“He would have to sue the father who had killed his child. He would have to be satisfied that the amount recovered would be sufficient to make it worthwhile proceeding,” she said.

[The Chronicle]