The family of a 16 year old teen who suffered a brutal attack at the hands of his teammates has filed a multi-million dollar lawsuit against several of his "friends" and their parents.
Cole Hagan, a 16 year old teen, was at a pool party in Lake Jackson, Texas on December 3rd when a few of his fellow peers from Brazoswood High School lured him outside where he was ambushed by another 17 year old student.
Many of the students involved were charged with aggravated assault who are accused of luring Hagan outside to be assaulted.
Hagan, who returned home from the hospital just in time for Christmas with his family, is now in outpatient rehab at TIRR Memorial Hermann undergoing speech, physical, and occupational therapy, his family told Insider.
The family of Hagan has now filed a lawsuit against 16 individuals seeking an excess of $50 million in damages and naming several of Hagan's peers and their parents in the lawsuit.
"The Hagan family is going to pursue justice in this case," attorney Loren Klitsas told Insider. "Their son Cole, a star football player, is permanently damaged, and they have no choice but to pursue the parties that are responsible for it. It's horrible."
After the attackers gave their initial statements to the police, the attackers returned to the police station to change their stories, claiming the assault on Hagan was sparked by his behavior toward their female friends. But, as expected, those claims were not corroborated by police, nor was any evidence of them included in police affidavits, as Insider previously reported.
Several students and their parents are also accused of the threat of bodily injury as the lawsuit claims they knew of the attack before it happened and did not stop it. One student is accused of sending photos of Hagan to another student "to commence the plan to brutally assault" the unwitting teen. Others are accused of being aware of the attack before it occurred. The students and their families could not be reached for comment.
"It is shocking because this is a small town and these kids all know each other," the Hagan family's attorney Klitsas told Insider. "They all hang out together, and that's why it's such a head-scratcher, that such a violent act could be done by this mob against a really nice kid."
The parents involved who have been accused of negligence could not be reached or did not respond to requests for comment.
How does all of this relate back to insurance? The importance of having a Personal Liability Umbrella is often underestimated. We can't speak for the parties involved in this situation, so we cannot comment on the status of their insurance policies but we can highlight this story as an example to show you how a Liability Umbrella would have come into play if the parties involved had one.
If you own a property, a business, or have children, having a Liability Umbrella is one of the most important, if not, the most important policy to have. This policy covers you for lawsuits by covering your court cost, lawyers expenses, and payout to the other party suing you. Going without an Umbrella leaves you at risk for having your assets liquidated in the case of a lawsuit, where you are accused and proven to be at fault, leaving you vulnerable to losing your savings, properties, and other assets etc.
Umbrella's start at $1MILL in coverage and increase by $1MILL increments thereafter. Most people think they'll never get sued, but if they are, the cost of an attorney hovers at roughly $300 per hour depending on where you live. Most $1MILL Umbrellas cost roughly $200 per year to add to your existing insurance. Keep in mind, most lawsuits don't take 1 hour to resolve. In most instances, lawsuits can take dozens of hours to resolve, especially once litigation has begun meaning that it will cost you thousands of dollars out of pocket. Spending $200 per year, which roughly breaks down to the cost of a large pizza per month, to protect yourself from losing your assets in the case of a lawsuit, is wise to say the least.
As an Insurance Brokerage, we hope that all parties involved were properly protected.
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