City set to OK $6M settlement with motorcyclist hit by officer

The City Council is expected to approve a $6 million settlement of a lawsuit brought by a man who was severely injured when his motorcycle was struck by an on-duty Honolulu Police Department officer’s SUV.

The city would pick up $1.7 million of the settlement, with Genesis Insurance Co. paying $4 million and National Interstate Insurance Co. the remaining $300,000, according to a draft report of the Council Executive Matters and Legal Affairs Committee, which gave tentative approval to the settlement Aug. 23.

Chairman Ron Menor said his committee approved the settlement at the recommendation of the city Department of Corporation Counsel.

“The plaintiff in this case sustained significant damages as a result of the careless and irresponsible conduct of the police officer involved,” Menor told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser. “This is not a settlement that the City Council relished … and it does not do much for the image of the Police Department.”

City Corporation Counsel Donna Leong and Rick Fried, Turull’s attorney, said they would not comment on the issue until the settlement is finalized.

Matthew Turull, a U.S. Army Ranger, was driving his 2011 Big Bear motorcycle southbound on Kaukonahua Road at about 7:05 a.m. on a Sunday in June 2013 when he was struck by a Toyota 4Runner driven by HPD Cpl. Gabriel Gonsalves III. Gonsalves had been traveling northbound on Kau- konahua Road and was attempting to turn left onto Kaamooloa Road when he struck the motorcycle, according to court documents.

Turull “suffered severe bodily injuries, suffered shock, great pain of body and mind, emotional distress, mental anguish, conscious pain and suffering, permanent scarring and was otherwise permanently injured,” court documents said.

The injuries included a left ankle fracture that required multiple surgeries and a finger amputation and surgery, court documents said.

The settlement is expected to pay for Turull’s ongoing medical bills as well as the lost wages as the result of his injuries. Turull was an Army lieutenant and Ranger, but after the accident was deemed “unfit for service.”

An HPD Vehicular Homicide Section investigation report determined that Gonsalves drove in a negligent manner by not yielding the right of way to the motorcycle, court documents said.

HPD’s Professional Standards Office conducted an investigation and brought a complaint against Gonsalves with the department’s Administrative Review Board. The board, composed of HPD brass, concurred with the Professional Standards Office and “imposed disciplinary action consisting of counseling and remedial training.”

HPD Chief Louis Kealoha agreed with the findings.

A state motor accident report found “no improper action” on Turull’s part in connection with the cause of the accident and that he was not exceeding the posted speed limit when the crash occurred.

Court documents said Gonsalves acknowledged that he had failed to come to a complete stop before making the left turn into the motorcycle, adding that he neither saw nor heard the motorcycle.

An HPD spokeswoman said Gonsalves has been with the department 14 years and is now a sergeant assigned to HPD patrol district 8.